J Gen Intern Med 2023 (Oct 19); 39 (4): 578–586

Table 1.

Characteristics of 146,087 Adult Participants Reporting Low Back Pain in the Prior 3 Months in the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), 2002 to 2018

Characteristic Unweighted
n 		Weighted
%
Survey year
  2002 8201 5.2 (5.0–5.3)
  2003 8584 5.6 (5.4–5.8)
  2004 8610 5.6 (5.4–5.7)
  2005 8976 5.6 (5.4–5.8)
  2006 6640 5.7 (5.5–5.9)
  2007 5969 5.1 (5.0–5.3)
  2008 5976 5.3 (5.1–5.5)
  2009 7878 5.9 (5.7–6.1)
  2010 7848 5.7 (5.5–5.9)
  2011 9815 6.2 (6.0–6.4)
  2012 9913 5.8 (5.7–6.0)
  2013 10,175 6.2 (6.1–6.4)
  2014 10,921 6.1 (5.9–6.3)
  2015 10,403 6.4 (6.2–6.6)
  2016 10,124 6.3 (6.1–6.6)
  2017 8065 6.4 (6.1–6.7)
  2018 7989 6.9 (6.7–7.2)
Age groups
  18–24 9589 7.0 (6.8–7.3)
  25–34 21,455 14.8 (14.6–15.1)
  35–44 24,527 16.5 (16.3–16.8)
  45–54 27,646 18.8 (18.6–19.1)
  55–64 27,141 18.5 (18.2–18.7)
  65–74 19,485 12.9 (12.7–13.2)
  75 +  16,244 11.4 (11.1–11.6)
Sex
  Male 59,729 41.8 (41.4–42.1)
  Female 86,358 58.2 (57.9–58.6)
Race
  White 117,565 83.6 (83.2–84.0)
  Black 20,515 11.9 (11.6–12.3)
  American Indian/Native Alaskan 1937 1.2 (1.0–1.3)
  Asian/Pacific Islander 4969 2.8 (2.7–2.9)
  Other 1101 0.5 (0.5–0.6)
Ethnicity
  Non-Hispanic 124,299 89.3 (88.9–89.6)
  Hispanic 21,788 10.7 (10.4–11.1)
Educational level
  No degree 26,951 16.5 (16.2–16.9)
  GED or high school diploma 41,001 28.2 (27.9–28.6)
  Some college 45,882 32.1 (31.8–32.4)
  College degree or higher 31,563 23.1 (22.7–23.5)
Income
  Below poverty threshold 25,545 17.8 (17.4–18.2)
  1 to 2 times above threshold 28,686 21.1 (20.8–21.4)
  > 2 to 5 times above threshold 51,602 40.7 (40.4–41.1)
  > 5 times above threshold 24,600 20.3 (19.9–20.7)
Census region
  Northeast 24,699 17.6 (17.1–18.1)
  Midwest 32,926 24.5 (23.9–25.1)
  South 51,921 35.9 (35.2–36.5)
  West 36,541 22.0 (21.5–22.6)
Citizenship
  Citizen 136,754 95.2 (95.0–95.4)
  Non-Citizen 9151 4.8 (4.6–5.0)
Nativity
  US native 124,488 87.9 (87.6–88.2)
  Born outside of US 21,503 12.1 (11.8–12.4)
Insurance coverage
  No insurance 21,055 13.5 (13.3–13.8)
  Public insurance only 61,109 44.1 (43.6–44.5)
  Private insurance only 13,493 8.5 (8.2–8.7)
  Public and private insurance 14,897 10.0 (9.8–10.3)
Chiropractic care
  No 122,122 83.3 (83.0–83.5)
  Yes 23,937 16.7 (16.5–17.0)
PT/OT
  No 122,323 83.5 (83.3–83.8)
  Yes 23,698 16.5 (16.2–16.7)
Chiropractic care or PT/OT
  No 104,307 70.8 (70.5–71.2)
  Yes 41,780 29.2 (28.8–29.5)