OBJECTIVES: The measurement of health state utility values (HSUVs) for a representative sample of Chinese people with low back pain (LBP) has not previously been performed. Our main aim was to quantify the HSUVs for different levels of disease severities in Chinese people with LBP.

METHODS: A consecutive sample with LBP was recruited from a large tertiary hospital in Shenyang, China. All subjects were interviewed using a standardized questionnaire including the EQ-5D-5L, the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and socio-demographic questions. A stepwise linear regression was used to evaluate the relationship between HSUVs, disease severity and demographic characteristics.

RESULTS: =0.739). Age and patient types (outpatient and inpatient) were also statistically significant variables. The results from the final model showed a highly significant negative relationship between HSUVs and disease severity (β =−0.860, p=0.000).

CONCLUSIONS: For the first time in China, we have quantified the impact of increasing severity of LBP on health utility of individuals. The HSUVs we have generated will be useful for economic evaluations of interventions for LBP.