Back pain: Lancet review calls for clinical assessment over routine scans
Guidelines favour patient education, physical activity and exercise, with imaging reserved for cases where serious disease is suspected, say doctors
A recent review of clinical practice guidelines published in The Lancet Rheumatology has called for a shift in the management of non-specific low back pain towards clinical assessment, patient education, physical activity, and exercise, while discouraging routine imaging when there is no suspicion of serious disease. The review, which examined guidelines issued between 1994 and 2026, emphasizes the importance of assessing symptoms and identifying warning signs before deciding on investigations or treatment.
Bengaluru-based specialists agree that this approach reflects a growing emphasis on restoring function and avoiding unnecessary investigations and interventions, focusing on understanding symptoms, reassuring patients, maintaining normal activities, prescribing appropriate exercises and physiotherapy, and using medication judiciously.
Brief written by urgent.news from The Hindu - Sci-Tech's own syndicated text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
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