STUDY DESIGN A retrospective data quality analysis was conducted. OBJECTIVE To compare missing response rates and internal consistency between computerized and paper surveys administered to spine patients. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Computerized patient surveys have been shown to offer numerous advantages over traditional paper surveys. It has been assumed that computerized surveys also imp...

To standardize outcome reporting in clinical trials of patients with nonspecific low back pain, an international multidisciplinary panel recommended physical functioning, pain intensity, and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) as core outcome domains. Given the lack of a consensus on measurement instruments for these 3 domains in patients with low back pain, this study aimed to generate such...

BACKGROUND Previous research has shown an association between preoperative depressive symptoms and a poorer surgery outcome in lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS). It is not known whether depressive symptoms throughout the recovery period are relevant to the outcome of surgery in LSS. In this prospective clinical study the predictive value of preoperative and postoperative depressive symptoms with res...

STUDY DESIGN Translation, cross-cultural adaptation, and psychometric testing. OBJECTIVE To translate the Back Beliefs Questionnaire (BBQ) into Arabic and investigate its psychometric properties in an Arabic-speaking sample of individuals with low back pain (LBP). SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA Back pain beliefs are associated with pain chronicity and disability in people with LBP. The BBQ is a...

QUESTION Does Kinesio Taping reduce disability, pain, and kinesiophobia in people with chronic non-specific low back pain? DESIGN Randomised trial, with concealed allocation, assessor blinding, and intention-to-treat analysis. PARTICIPANTS Sixty adults with chronic non-specific low back pain. INTERVENTION The experimental intervention was Kinesio Taping over the lumbar spine for one week;...

Patients and Methods Between 2007 and 2011, 98 patients underwent coccygectomy for chronic coccydynia. The patients were aged > 18 years, had coccygeal pain, local tenderness and a radiological abnormality, and had failed conservative management. Outcome measures were the Short Form 36 (SF-36), the Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and a visual analogue scale (VAS) for pain. Secondary analysis co...

A systematic review of the literature was performed to establish whether direct repair of the pars defect or intervertebral fusion achieves better Oswestry Disability Index scores in adolescent spondylolysis or low-grade spondylolisthesis. Nine studies fulfilled the inclusion criteria, reporting a minimum total of 80 direct repairs and 108 fusions because of presumed replication of data between...