Table 3.

Subgroup analyses presenting pooled prevalence estimates for various subgroups with and without sensitivity analyses

Subgroup	Category	Arcsine prevalence, 95% CI	Inter-group heterogeneity	Sensitivity analysis, 95% CI (Arcsine Excluding High ROB),	Inter-group heterogeneity
Back Pain Definition	Broad	4.9% (3.1-7.1)	p = 0.1850	3.9% (1.9-6.4)	p = 0.8574
	Narrow	3.6% (3.2-4.0)		3.6% (3.2-4.1)
Coding	Complaint	5.5% (3.5-7.8)	p = 0.0459	5.0% (2.6-8.2)	p = 0.2289
	Diagnosis	3.4% (3.1-3.8)		3.4% (3.1-3.8)
Health System	Private	4.3% (3.4-5.3)	p = 0.9464	4.1% (3.2-5.2)	p = 0.2106
	Public	4.4% (3.4-5.3)		3.3% (2.6-4.1)
Emergency Setting	Standard	4.4% (3.7-5.2)	p = 0.7734	4.0% (3.2-4.9)	p = 0.7149
	Non-Standard	6.1% (0.0-2.3)		6.1% (0.00-23.2)

Notes: Back Pain Definition; “Narrow” indicates studies using narrow definitions of low back pain. They used a definition of ‘low back pain’ or ‘non-specific low back pain’, or were limited to pain complaints in the lumbar region, while “Broad” indicates studies using broad definitions of low back pain. They used a general definition of ‘back pain’ to define their prevalence estimate, which may have included some individuals with back pain in regions other than the low back pain (for example, thoracic spine). Coding System; “Complaint” indicates studies using presenting complaints for their definitions of low back pain while “Diagnosis” indicates studies using diagnosis codes for their definition. Health System; “Private” indicates studies conducted in regions with private healthcare funding and “Public” indicates studies conducted in regions with public healthcare funding. Emergency Setting; “Standard” indicates studies provide initial treatment to patients with a broad spectrum of illness and injuries, while “Non-Standard” indicates settings, which provide care for a limited population and/or limited spectrum of illness and injuries