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  1. B W Koes, professor of general practice (b.koes@erasmusmc.nl)1,
  2. M W van Tulder, professor of health technology assessment2,
  3. S Thomas, professor of general practice1
  1. 1 Department of General Practice, Erasmus MC, University Medical Center Rotterdam, PO Box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam, Netherlands
  2. 2 EMGO Institute, VU University Medical Centre, Van der Boechorststraat 7, 1081 BT Amsterdam, Netherlands
  1. Correspondence to: B W Koes
  • Accepted 28 April 2006

Introduction

Low back pain is a considerable health problem in all developed countries and is most commonly treated in primary healthcare settings. It is usually defined as pain, muscle tension, or stiffness localised below the costal margin and above the inferior gluteal folds, with or without leg pain (sciatica). The most important symptoms of non-specific low back pain are pain and disability. The diagnostic and therapeutic management of patients with low back pain has long been characterised by considerable variation within and between countries among general practitioners, medical specialists, and other healthcare professionals.1 2 w1 Recently, a large number of randomised clinical trials have been done, systematic reviews have been written, and clinical guidelines have become available. The outlook for evidence based management of low back pain has greatly improved. This review presents the current state of science regarding the diagnosis and treatment of low back pain.

Sources and selection criteria

We used the Cochrane Library to identify relevant systematic reviews that evaluate the effectiveness of conservative, complementary, and surgical interventions. Medline searches were used to find other relevant systematic reviews on diagnosis and treatment of low back pain, with the keywords “low back pain”, “systematic review”, “meta-analysis”, “diagnosis”, and “treatment”. Our personal files were used for additional references. We also checked available clinical guidelines and used Clinical Evidence as source for clinically relevant information on benefits and harms of treatments.3 4

Who gets it?

Most of us will experience at least one episode of low back pain during our life. Reported lifetime prevalence varies from 49% to 70% and point prevalences from 12% to 30% are reported in Western countries.w2 w3

How is it diagnosed?

The diagnostic process is mainly focused on the triage of patients with specific or non-specific low back pain. Specific low back pain is defined as symptoms caused by a specific pathophysiological mechanism, such …

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