Introduction:
Back pain syndromes constitute a serious health problem. They most often affect people between 40 and 60 years of age, but it also happens that they appear before the age of 30. They are a frequent problem in nurses. The etiology of these ailments is multifactorial. The main causes are physical stresses on the spine: lifting, a forced posture, and obesity. Human neurophysiological predispositions and social conditions also play an important role. The study attempts to determine whether the respondents know the cause of their ailments, and what the prevention of this disease, knowledge of the principles of ergonomics and pro-health measures should be.

Material and methods:
In this work, the frequency of back pain syndromes in nurses in two hospitals in the Podkarpackie region was observed. The author’s own questionnaire and anthropometric research were used.

Results:
Pain occurred in 89% of the respondents, and the main causes of these ailments were physical stress, overweight and low physical activity. The respondents knew the principles of ergonomics, but did not use them at work, and the length of service was not statistically significant. The lack of training and appropriate equipment was noted. Stress factors had an effect on back pain only in 13% of the respondents.

Conclusions:
Back pain occurs in 90% of the surveyed nurses in hospitals in the Podkarpackie region and has the features of an occupational disease. The respondents know the principles of ergonomics and express their willingness to deepen their knowledge on this subject. This knowledge should be supplemented with the basic understanding of active physiotherapy and neurophysiology due to the role of psychological factors in the treatment of chronic pain.