Classification of problems, clinical findings and treatment goals in patients with low back pain using the ICIDH-2 Beta-2

Purpose : This study aimed to explore problems, clinical findings and treat ment goals presented by patients with low back pain and their physiotherapi sts, and to which extent this information could be classified according to the ICIDH-2 Beta-2. Method: An explorative field trial of 12 physiotherapists and 28 patients w ith low back pain in outpatient practices. Results : Pain and impairments related to muscles, joints and structures of the lower back, pelvis and hips were most often presented. Functioning rel ated to daily activities and participation in society was often described i n the treatment goals, but vaguely formulated. Most of the problems and cli nical findings could be classified according to the ICIDH-2 Beta-2. However , several treatment goals could not be classified. Conclusions : There was a lack of specification in several of the detailed codes of the Body Function and Structure Dimension, particularly regarding classification of pain and muscle functions. The main limitation concerned the detailed version of the Body Function and Structure Dimension, which pr ovided no additional precision compared with the short version when classif ying pain and other impairments. However, the ICIDH-2 offers a tool to enha nce the precision of clinical findings and the possibilities for performing a multidimensional evaluation of functioning related to patients with low back pain.