Back Pain Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Back Pain, including details on lower back pain, sciatica, treatment, prevention, medication.

Not all acute lower back pain is benign--paravertebral abscess and colonic cancer.

Ballardini P, Incasa E, Gamberini S, Tampieri M, Zangirolami A, Marzocchi S, Benea G, Manfredini R

Department of Internal Medicine, Hospital of the Delta, Lagosanto (FE), Azienda USL di Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy.

Low back pain with sciatica is one of the most common complaints of patients presenting to the ED, and it is usually managed on an outpatient basis. However, acute lower back pain not always derives from a benign cause. We report here the case of a 63-year-old diabetic man who presented to the ED complaining of acute low back pain with sciatica and fever. The cause was a large paravertebral abscess by Streptococcus milleri, and this was the first presenting sign of an unknown underlying colonic cancer.

Published 15 April 2008 in Am J Emerg Med, 26(4): 513.e3-4.
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Articles on Back Pain published 15 April 2008:

Spontaneous septic diskitis: a common complaint with a serious pathologic cause that should not been overlooked.   Am J Emerg Med, 26(4): 514.e5-6.

Many people who have low back pain are likely to be out of work and taking medication and probably make demands on both primary and secondary health care as well as the private sector. Septic diskitis is a rare cause of back pain, accounting for less than 0.01% of cases in the primary care setting (Carragee EJ. Pyogenic vertebral osteomyelitis. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 1997;79:874-80). It has been associated with a high morbidity and mortality in the past. Although it is an unusual complication in ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Back Pain published 1 April 2008:

The reliability of nonorganic sign-testing and the Waddell score in patients with chronic low back pain.   Spine, 33(7): 821-6.

STUDY DESIGN: An observational prospective cohort study. OBJECTIVES: To determine the reliability of nonorganic sign-testing in patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP), and to identify determinants of diagnostic disagreement. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: For the assessment of behavioral responses to examination, Waddell et al published "the Waddell score" in 1980. The Waddell score consists of 8 nonorganic signs, divided into 5 categories. The overall score is positive if at least 3 ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Better backs by better beds?   Spine, 33(7): 703-8.

STUDY DESIGN: A "randomized"/stratified, single-blinded, parallel-group study. OBJECTIVE.: To evaluate 3 structurally different mattresses relative influence on patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP). SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: In several advertisements, it is proclaimed that certain mattresses have a positive effect on LBP, and especially a hard mattress is commonly believed to have a positive effect. METHODS: One hundred sixty CLBP patients were randomized to 1 of 3 groups, ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Back Pain published 31 March 2008:

Management of back pain in patients with previous back surgery.   Am J Med, 121(4): 272-8.

The 80,000 or so patients a year who continue to have chronic, disabling back pain after one or more spinal surgeries are said to have failed back surgery syndrome. There are no controlled studies to guide physicians in the management of these patients. Six anatomical abnormalities of the spine most commonly result in back surgery, and 7 undesirable outcomes lead to failed back surgery syndrome. On the basis of 5 large retrospective studies and our clinical experience, we suggest a systematic ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Reliability of the assessment of lumbar range of motion and maximal isometric strength in patients with chronic low back pain.   Arch Phys Med Rehabil, 89(4): 788-91.

OBJECTIVE: To examine the interobserver reliability of the assessment of lumbar range of motion (ROM) and maximal isometric strength in patients with chronic low back pain (CLBP) using commercially available equipment. DESIGN: A prospective repeated-measures design. SETTING: Ambulatory care in a university hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Twelve patients (5 men, 7 women; age range, 20-52y) with CLBP, with a mean visual analog scale score of 31.5+/-25.8mm, volunteered for the study. The duration of their ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

The impact of increasing paraspinal muscle activity on stature recovery in asymptomatic people.   Arch Phys Med Rehabil, 89(4): 749-53.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether changes in stature recovery could be exhibited in an asymptomatic group through the use of functional electric stimulation (FES). DESIGN: A repeated-measures cohort study considering the effects of FES on stature recovery after a loaded walking task in a group of asymptomatic subjects. Each participant performed the 20-minute loaded walking task (at 10% of body mass) on 2 separate occasions followed by a 20-minute recovery period, once with FES and once without. ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Back Pain published 21 March 2008:

Rehabilitative ultrasound measurement of select trunk muscle activation during induced pain.   Man Ther, 13(2): 132-8.

Rehabilitative ultrasound imaging (RUSI) is considered a valid method to measure muscle activation in key spinal muscles in asymptomatic subjects. Research measuring muscle activation with RUSI in painful subjects is limited. The aim of this study was to determine if changes in muscle activation from experimentally induced pain can be measured by RUSI. Six male subjects performed tasks known to activate the transverse abdominis (TrA) and lumbar multifidus (LM) while RUSI measurements of muscle ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Back Pain published 19 March 2008:

Biomechanical strains and low back disorders: quantifying the effects of the number of years of exposure on various types of pain.   Occup Environ Med, 65(4): 268-74.

OBJECTIVE: To assess the effects of duration of exposure to biomechanical strains on various types of low back pain (LBP). METHODS: The population study was a random sample from the GAZEL cohort. Durations of exposure to selected biomechanical strains during subjects' working lifetime and potential confounders were assessed in 1996 by self-administered questionnaires. Data on LBP in the previous 12 months were collected in 2001. Relations between various dimensions of LBP and durations of ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

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