“Evidence-Based diagnosis and treatment of the painful sacroiliac joint”

Background

The sacroiliac joint, or SI joint, is a very large joint at the very bottom of the spine. This joint connects the spine to the pelvis and is believed by many to be a primary source of low back and buttock pain. Many patients present to the Chiropractic office – particularly when they’ve had long-standing – chronic pain, with a complaint of “SI pain”. However, this study shows that only 13% of patients have true SI joint pain – most of the complaints are from the low back.

How the study was performed

The study investigated effective and ineffective ways of detecting SI joint problems. The paper demonstrated five different tests that have been shown to effectively stress (ie. test) the SI joint and it proved that when an examiner found that three of these were positive, a true SI joint problem exists.

What we learn from this research

We learn an evidenced, proven technique to determining if the patient’s back pain is an SI joint problem or a back problem. Once we know what the source of the pain is, then treatment is much more focused and effective.