Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34814879›Full record

ArticleBMC musculoskeletal disorders2021

A diagnostic tool for people with lumbar instability: a criterion-related validity study.

Thiwaphon Chatprem, Rungthip Puntumetakul, Jaturat Kanpittaya, James Selfe, Gillian Yeowell

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in BMC musculoskeletal disorders, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
12citing papers in PubMed
1.8field-weighted citation impact, top 16% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

12 citing papers in PubMed, 21 citations in OpenAlex.

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  5. Comparable long-term pain and disability outcomes following decompression alone versus decompression with fusion in lumbar spinal stenosis patients with high-signal facet joints.European spine journal : official publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society · 2025
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

5 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.

Thiwaphon ChatpremFaculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand.
Rungthip PuntumetakulResearch Center in Back, Neck, Other Joint Pain and Human Performance (BNOJPH), Faculty of Associated Medical Sciences, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, 40002, Thailand. rungthiprt@gmail.com.
Jaturat KanpittayaDepartment of Radiology, Faculty of Medicine, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen, Thailand.
James SelfeDepartment of Health Professions, Faculty of Health and Education, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK.
Gillian YeowellDepartment of Health Professions, Faculty of Health and Education, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK.
Khon Kaen University · THManchester Metropolitan University · GBThailand Research Fund · TH

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundSeveral clinical tests used to identify patients with lumbar instability have reported diagnostic accuracy in separate studies with conflicting results. To augment the diagnostic process, tests that are better able to identify lumbar instability suitable for use in the clinical setting are required. The aim of this study was to identify the probability to diagnose patients with lumbar instability, using x-ray imaging as the reference standard.

methodsThis study was a cross-sectional, diagnostic validity study. One hundred forty participants with chronic low back pain underwent an x-ray assessment and 14 clinical examinations. Data were analysed using multivariate regression methods to determine which clinical tests were most diagnostic for lumbar instability when they were applied together.

resultsEighteen (12.85%) participants had radiological lumbar instability. Three clinical tests i) interspinous gap change during flexion-extension, ii) passive accessory intervertebral movement tests, iii) posterior shear test demonstrated an ability to diagnose lumbar instability of 67% when they were all positive. At this probability threshold, sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio (+LR), and negative likelihood ratio (-LR) were 5.56, 99.18%, 6.78, and 0.95.

conclusionsThese 3 clinical tests could be useful in identifying patients with lumbar instability in the general community. These three tests are simple to perform by physical therapists, reliable to use in a clinical setting, and safe for patients. We recommend physical therapists use these three tests to assess patients who are suspected of having lumbar instability, in the absence of an x-ray assessment, to receive appropriate targeted intervention or referral for further investigation.

trial registrationThai Clinial Trial Registry (TCTR 20180820001; 19th August 2018).

Indexed as

Joint InstabilityLow Back PainSpinal DiseasesCross-Sectional StudiesHumansRange of Motion, ArticularDiagnosticInstability testX-ray examination

Identifiers

PMID34814879
PMCPMC8609735
OpenAlexW3216882604

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.