Back sufferers 'stay at work'

The Work Foundation said early intervention and an emphasis on keeping sufferers of musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in work would boost productivity and reduce the 2.6 million people claiming incapacity benefit.

The Government was urged to rethink how health agencies co-ordinate treatment and to give a higher priority to the impact on the labour market of days lost.

MSDs account for up to a third of GP consultations, cause 9.5 million lost working days and cost the economy 7.4 billion a year, said the report.

Michelle Mahdon, senior researcher at the Work Foundation, said: “Stress hogs headlines, but in terms of people affected, MSDs are the bigger problem.

TUC general secretary Brendan Barber commented: “This advice is at best simplistic - and at worst dangerous. What we need is more access to rehabilitation for MSDs with further research .”