DEVELOPING A VALID AND RELIABLE MEASURE OF HEALTH OUTCOME FOR PATIENTS WITH LOW-BACK-PAIN

Objective. The authors developed and validated a measure of health out come for patients with low back pain. Results. A questionnaire was dev eloped incorporating the type of questions asked when taking a clinica l history. After testing on a sample of 568 patients, three questions were discarded from the questionnaire. The final questionnaire was fou nd to be reliable and valid in the sense that patients' scores correla ted highly with their scores on a general health profile and with GP p erceptions of severity. Health status in patients with low back pain w as significantly impaired when compared with the general population. C onclusion. A clinically based questionnaire, together with a general m easure of health, can provide a valid and reliable package for the rou tine assessment of perceived health in patients with low back pain.