Prescribing Advice for GPs

Diagnosis and Treatment of Low Back Pain

October 15, 2007 on 2:47 pm | In Prescribing Extra - Other |  Print |

The Annals of Internal Medicine has recently published a Joint Clinical Guideline for the diagnosis and treatment of low back pain.

The guideline was produced by the American College of Physicians and the American Pain Society and contains seven recommendations, each ranked for the strength of the recommendation and the quality of the supporting evidence.

The recommendations include:

• Classification of the back pain depending whether it is non specific, associated with radiculopathy or spinal stenosis or associated with another specific spinal cause
• Appropriate use of imaging or other diagnostic tests depending on the above classification
• Provision of advice about remaining active and effective self-care

Action: Clinicians who see cases of low back pain may find these recommendations helpful when providing advice and making referrals for diagnostic tests.