Understanding imaging reports for low back pain

None listed

Low back pain is a common and costly problem and a significant contributor to global disability. Although clinical practice guidelines advise against imaging in non-specific low back pain, many patients still receive imaging, and those that do are more likely to go on to further unnecessary testing and treatments. Language that is used in imaging reports to describe findings may lead to clinician and patient anxiety that in turn leads to further testing. This study aims to investigate the self-reported understanding of commonly used terms in lumbar spine imaging reports in the general population, and the association between understanding of terms in the report and worry about the condition. Our hypotheses for this study are: • Commonly used terms used in lumbar spine imaging reports are not well understood by the general public. • These commonly used terms cause worry about the perceived seriousness and persistence of the condition. • People with more pessimistic back beliefs as measured by the Back Beliefs Questionnaire will rate radiological terms as more worrisome regarding seriousness and perceived likely persistence. • People with current low back pain will rate radiological terms as more worrisome compared to both people who have had low back pain in the past and people who have never had low back pain. The study design is a cross-sectional online survey. Participants will be asked demographic and low back pain history questions, then use a Likert scale to rate terms used in low back pain imaging reports regarding their comprehension and worry about each term. We will also ask further questions about their views of radiology reports for low back pain, and employ the Back Beliefs Questionnaire to determine their beliefs regarding low back pain and the relationship to their previous answers.