The American College of Physicians stated in new practice guidelines that Imaging scans to diagnose lower back pain are unnecessary in most cases and may do more harm than good. On the contrary, the scans may pick up unrelated abnormalities, leading to additional tests or procedures that are of no benefit and some scans expose patients to high levels of radiation.

Lower backache is caused by strain on bones, muscles and ligaments. This can be treated with over-the-counter painkillers and usually pain declines within few days. This medical condition can be easily identified by the physician taking a good medical history thus ideally X-ray or scan should be reserved for high-risk patients.

Another new study indicates that imaging tests such as MRIs and X-rays frequently are performed so doctors can protect themselves from lawsuits. On the other hand Medical malpractice lawsuits often hinge on charges that the doctor should have ordered more tests!

The study was conducted by the Journal of General Internal Medicine, analyzed 109 studies whose results were published in 2007 in the Journal of the American Medical Association, the New England Journal of Medicine, Lancet, Circulation and BMJ, among others.

The average age of participants in the trials was 61. While including older patients with complicated conditions in clinical trials may make them more expensive and difficult to carry out, “the population in a clinical trial should reflect the population that will be treated in the real world,” said Dr. Donna M. Zulman, the paper’s lead author.

Reference: http://www.tampabay.com/news/health/research/briefs-guidelines-say-x-rays-scans-unnecessary-to-diagnose-most-lower-back/1152149