ABSTRACT
There are nearly 500,000 U.S. workers each year who, as a result of injury, are unable to resume their jobs
for long periods of time. Low back pain will afflict roughly 80% of the population at some time in their
lives (Wheeler and Hanley, 1995). Workers’ compensation costs have reached $70 billion per year,
tripling since 1980. The direct cost of the situation is staggering and in each case the degree of loss is
unpredictable.
