Addressing fear-avoidance beliefs in a fear-avoidance world – translating research to clinical practice
Proposed by: Jim Rainville, Aage Indahl, et al

Fear-avoidance beliefs (FABs) encompass a person’s perception of the importance of low back pain and susceptibility of their back to further injury. The genesis of FABs is likely complex, with contributions from personal, family, societal, and medical sources. FABs are important predictors of disability and can be successfully targeted by medical interventions. Regardless, FABs are infrequently addressed during medical encounter. This workshop seeks participants interested in the clinical application of addressing FABs to the care of low back pain. It will require review of reading materials relevant to this topic prior to the workshop. This workshop will include 5 short lectures reviewing the experiences of clinicians, educators, and researchers that have studied FABs and translated the findings into daily clinical practice and teaching. Group discussion will then explore the challenges of educating health care providers about addressing FABs during low back pain encounters. A manuscript reviewing workshop content will be produced.

12/01/08