Musculoskeletal pain in adults born preterm: Evidence from two birth cohort studies

Abstract

<h4>BACKGROUND: </h4><p>Individuals born preterm are at risk for later developmental problems and long-term morbidities. There is conflicting evidence regarding musculoskeletal pain in young adulthood. We investigated the prevalence of self-reported musculoskeletal pain in young adults born across the range of preterm birth compared with a term-born reference group.</p><h4>METHODS: </h4><p>From two Finnish birth cohorts, 184 individuals born early preterm (<34 weeks), 350 late preterm (34 to <37 weeks), and 641 at term completed a self-report questionnaire of musculoskeletal pain at mean age 24.1 (SD1.4) years. Group differences were examined by logistic regression models adjusting for sex, age and cohort (Model 1), potential early life confounders (Model 2), and lifestyle factors related to physical (Model 3) and mental health (Model 4).</p><h4>RESULTS: </h4><p>The late preterm group had lower odds for reporting neck pain (0.73; 95% confidence interval (CI): 0.56-0.96), which was further reduced when adjusting for early life confounders and lifestyle (Model 4). Odds for reporting peripheral pain was 0.69 (95% CI: 0.48-0.99, Model 4) in the early preterm group. The odds for reporting any pain, shoulder, low back or widespread pain did not differ significantly between groups, although odds for reporting widespread pain was 0.77 (95% CI: 0.58-1.03, Model 4) in the late preterm group.</p><h4>CONCLUSIONS: </h4>We did not find evidence of increased prevalence of musculoskeletal pain in adults born early or late preterm. In contrast, our results suggest that adults born preterm have a slightly lower risk for reporting musculoskeletal pain, also when we adjusted for lifestyle factors.