Estimates of success in patients with sciatica due to lumbar disc herniation depend upon outcome measure
Anne Julsrud Haugen, Lars Grøvle, Jens Ivar Brox, Bård Natvig, Anne Keller, Dag Soldal, Margreth Grotle
September 2011, Volume 20, Issue 10, pp 1669 - 1675 Original Article Read Full Article 10.1007/s00586-011-1809-3
First Online: 24 April 2011
The objectives were to estimate the cut-off points for success on different sciatica outcome measures and to determine the success rate after an episode of sciatica by using these cut-offs. A 12-month multicenter observational study was conducted on 466 patients with sciatica and lumbar disc herniation. The cut-off values were estimated by ROC curve analyses using Completely recovered or Much better on a 7-point global change scale as external criterion for success. The cut-off values (references in brackets) at 12 months were leg pain VAS 17.5 (0–100), back pain VAS 22.5 (0–100), Sciatica Bothersomeness Index 6.5 (0–24), Maine-Seattle Back Questionnaire 4.5 (0–12), and the SF-36 subscales bodily pain 51.5, and physical functioning 81.7 (0–100, higher values indicate better health). In conclusion, the success rates at 12 months varied from 49 to 58% depending on the measure used. The proposed cut-offs may facilitate the comparison of success rates across studies.
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