11-10-2023, 02:17 PM
(11-10-2023, 12:52 PM)WeezyBengal Wrote: He ended up getting one...
And? You asked if anyone else thought it was wild a MRI wasn't performed until Tuesday. I explained why it isn't wild. Probably the only indication for the MRI is because he plays in the NFL.
Magnetic Resonance Imaging of the Lumbar Spine in People without Back Pain | NEJM
Quote:We found a high prevalence of abnormalities in the lumbar spine on MRI examination of people without back pain. Only 36 percent of those examined had a normal disk at all levels. About half had a bulge at at least one intervertebral disk, and about a quarter had at least one disk protrusion. Given the high prevalence of back pain in the population, the discovery of a bulge or protrusion on an MRI scan in a patient with low back pain may frequently be coincidental. Therefore, the clinical picture should be correlated with the MRI results. Abnormalities of the lumbar spine by MRI examination can be meaningless if considered in isolation.
The majority of people without back pain have abnormal MRI results. What do you do with those patients with abnormal results? Don't order unnecessary tests if they won't change the treatment plan.
