Physical Activity During Pregnancy and Postpartum Low Back Pain: A Prospective Cohort Study in Vietnam

Low back pain (LBP) is a universal public health problem for all age groups, related to the upright stance of humans. Postpartum LBP is more common and can lead to limitations to women's daily activity. Knowledge about preventing postpartum LBP is limited, and the relationship between prenatal physical activity (PA) and LBP remains inconclusive. We conducted a prospective cohort study of 1807 singleton pregnant Vietnamese women to investigate the association between prenatal PA and postpartum LBP using logistic regression analyses. The prevalence of postpartum LBP was 12.3% (n = 222). Women reporting LBP spent more hours sitting per week. Relative to the lowest level of total PA, the highest level was associated with reduced odds of postpartum LBP (odds ratio = 0.55; 95% confidence interval = 0.38-0.80). Inverse associations with LBP were also observed for light intensity, moderate-to-vigorous intensity, household/caregiving, occupational, and transportation activities. Overall, prenatal PA was inversely associated with postpartum LBP in Vietnamese women.