Assessment of Low Back Pain Outcomes
Summary
Assessment of low back pain outcomes encompasses a spectrum of quantitative and qualitative measures designed to evaluate pain intensity, functional disability and quality of life. Traditional clinical outcome assessments include clinician-administered scales and patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs) such as the Oswestry Disability Index and the Roland–Morris Disability Questionnaire, which capture physical function, pain interference and daily living activities. Increasingly, condition-specific instruments, notably the Japanese Orthopaedic Association Back Pain Evaluation Questionnaire (JOABPEQ), offer multidimensional appraisal of lumbar function, social participation and mental health. Imaging-based quantification, particularly using computed tomography to measure intervertebral disc bulging, has enhanced objective evaluation of structural changes and their relationship to postoperative recovery. Concurrently, recognition of psychosocial contributors has led to cross-sectional and longitudinal studies linking mental health status, lifestyle factors and biological markers to low back pain trajectories. Emerging consensus advocates integration of biomechanical, psychological and social domains within standardised frameworks, facilitating global benchmarking, tailoring of intervention strategies and improved prognostic accuracy for both surgical and conservative management pathways.
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Assessment of Low Back Pain Outcomes publication trend
The graph below shows the total number of articles in assessment of low back pain outcomes across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).
Technical terms
Computed tomography (CT): A radiographic technique that produces cross-sectional images of anatomical structures, enabling precise measurement of intervertebral disc morphology.
Percentage of extended area (%EAD): A metric quantifying disc bulging as a proportion of the endplate area on axial CT images.
Japanese Orthopaedic Association Back Pain Evaluation Questionnaire (JOABPEQ): A disease-specific PROM comprising five domains to assess low back pain, lumbar function, walking ability, social life function and mental health.
Visual analogue scale (VAS): A continuous line scale used by patients to self-report pain intensity, typically ranging from ‘no pain’ to ‘worst imaginable pain’.
Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA): A statistical method used to test whether data fit a hypothesised measurement model, verifying the underlying factor structure of a questionnaire.
References
- Quantitative Analysis of Lumbar Disc Bulging in Patients with Lumbar Spinal Stenosis: Implication for Surgical Outcomes of Decompression Surgery. Journal of Clinical Medicine (2023).
- Mental status is significantly associated with low back pain: a survey-based cross-sectional study among Japanese women. BMC Research Notes (2023).
- Structural validity of the Japanese Orthopedic Association back pain evaluation questionnaire in individuals with chronic low back pain. Revista da Associação Médica Brasileira (2021).
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