Causal effect of education on low back pain, intervertebral disc degeneration and sciatica: Mendelian randomization study.

BACKGROUND

Previous observational studies have examined the association between educational attainment (EA) and low back pain (LBP), intervertebral disc degeneration (IVDD), and sciatica. However, research is limited, and these findings are susceptible to reverse causality and confounding factors.

METHODS

A two‑sample Mendelian randomization (MR) approach was applied to evaluate the associations of EA with LBP, IVDD, and sciatica, using publicly available summary statistics from large genome‑wide association studies (EBI, UK Biobank, and FinnGen) of European ancestry populations. A series of sensitivity analyses was conducted to assess the robustness of the findings.

RESULTS

Higher genetically predicted educational attainment was associated with a lower risk of LBP, IVDD, and sciatica, although the effect magnitudes varied across cohorts. Protective associations were more evident in the FinnGen dataset, whereas results from the UK Biobank (UKB) and European Bioinformatics Institute (EBI) were directionally consistent but not statistically significant. The overall findings remained robust across multiple MR methods, with minimal evidence of pleiotropy.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings suggest that higher educational attainment may have a protective effect against common spine-related disorders. Enhancing education‑related resources could support early prevention and reduce the population burden associated with these conditions.