INTRODUCTION: Biobank-type studies are typically large but have very low participation rates. It has been suggested that these studies may provide biased estimates of prevalence but are likely to provide valid estimates of association. We test these hypotheses using data collected on @entity158 in a large Biobank study in the United Kingdom. METHODS: UK Biobank recruited 503,325 @entity1 aged 40-69   years (participation rate 5.5%). @entity1 completed questionnaires, including @entity158 , lifestyle and environment factors. As a comparison, we used both a large population study of @entity158 (MUSICIAN: n   =   8847, aged: 40-69   years) conducted 2008-2009 and the National @entity1 Development study (NCDS) which recruited all @entity1 in Great Britain born during one week of 1958 and followed them up at age 44   years (n   =   9377). RESULTS: 'Any @entity158 ' (UK Biobank 61.0%; MUSICIAN 63.9%), @entity1118 (42.9%, 52.2%) and site-specific @entity4512 (back 26.2%, 29.7%; shoulder/neck 23.3%, 25.3%) were generally similar in UK Biobank and MUSICIAN. The prevalence of @entity1118 and most regional @entity4512 in UK Biobank were all within 2% of that in NCDS. CONCLUSION: UK Biobank has provided estimates of the prevalence of @entity158 which are similar to those from previous large-scale studies, although a formal comparison of the estimates cannot be made. It has also confirmed known associations with the reporting of @entity158 . Despite its very low participation rate, such a study provides the opportunity to investigate novel exposure- @entity158 relationships and investigate rarer exposures and characteristics to further our knowledge of the epidemiology of @entity158 .

Can large surveys conducted on highly selected populations provide valid information on the epidemiology of common health conditions? An analysis of UK Biobank data on XXXX .

@entity1 :: ('9606', 'Species') :: ['Child', 'Participants', 'persons'] @entity4512 :: ('MESH:D059352', 'Disease') :: ['musculoskeletal pain', 'musculoskeletal pains'] @entity1118 :: ('MESH:D059350', 'Disease') :: ['chronic pain'] @entity158 :: ('MESH:D010146', 'Disease') :: ['pain']
@entity4512 :: (MESH:D059352,Disease) :: ['musculoskeletal pain']
