Please note that only limited free access to this journal is available in your country or territory.

To access the full content of this article you must purchase it (US$9.49). After payment of this one-off fee, you will gain unrestricted online access to the article and a PDF version sent to your email.

As part of our special introductory offer, after purchasing this article you will have unrestricted access to all the articles in this issue for free!

Registered users can purchase/access the article by logging in below. To register for free click here

Registered users login here:

  • Email Address:
     
  • Password:
     
  •  
If you have forgotten your password click here
0 rating

Pain

Sheehan NJ.

Edith Cavell Hospital, Peterborough, UK.

 Ann Rheum Dis 2010;69:7–11.

Editor’s note: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the lumbar spine is a sensitive method for examining both bones and soft tissues. However, asymptomatic abnormalities of dubious clinical relevance are common in the lumbar spine, particularly in older patients. Disc degeneration or asymptomatic bulging is almost universal in asymptomatic individuals aged >60 years. There are published guidelines for the use of spinal MRI, which particularly focus on the diagnosis of conditions such as nerve root entrapment and cauda equina syndrome (Rofo 2007;179:914–24, Ann Intern Med 2007;147:478–91). It is widely accepted that use of MRI to investigate simple low back pain in primary care is ineffective.

Please login or register to continue reading this article
Return to top
Login/Register

Post Page On

LATEST ARTICLES

Our most popular articles