• Louis Jacob, Agathe Clouzeau, Agnès Ostertag, David Petrover, Jean-François Vergnol, Odile Morchoisne, Léa Pavan, Marion Landais, Thomas Davergne, Augustin Latourte, Pascal Richette, and Johann Beaudreuil.
• Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Lariboisière-Fernand Widal Hospital, Assistance Publique- Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP), Université Paris Cité, Paris, France. louis.jacob.contacts@gmail.com.
• Eur Spine J. 2025 Jan 24.

PurposeLittle information exists on the potential differential response to functional restoration between non-specific chronic low back pain (NSCLBP) individuals with and those without Modic type 1 changes. Therefore, this case-control study investigated the response profile of NSCLBP patients with and without Modic type 1 changes undergoing functional restoration.MethodsThe present study included patients participating in a functional restoration program (day-hospital program lasting five weeks) at a French tertiary care center from 2009 to 2019. Each case with Modic type 1 changes was matched to one to two controls without Modic type 1 changes by sex, working incapacity, and lumbar spine surgery history. The primary effectiveness outcome was the Quebec Back Pain Disability Scale (QBPDS) score (0-100, with higher scores indicating higher disability). There were multiple secondary outcomes, such as subjective improvement and return to work.ResultsThe study included 83 patients (cases: median [IQR] age 47.8 [11.6] years, 77.4% women; controls: median [IQR] age 46.0 [16.2] years, 75.0% women). At three months, there were no statistically significant differences between cases and controls in the QBPDS score (34.0 versus 31.5), subjective improvement (67.7% versus 69.2%), return to work in those who were not working at the inclusion (72.7% versus 52.6%), and the consumption of different analgesics.ConclusionThe response profile of NSCLBP adults undergoing functional restoration did not statistically differ between the groups with and without Modic type 1 changes. These findings suggest that patients may benefit from such a program irrespective of their Modic type 1 status.© 2025. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.

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