Differentiating Inflammatory and Mechanical Back Pain

Introduction Back pain (which includes neck, thoracic and lumbar pain) is a common presenting condition in physiotherapy practice. Neck pain and low back pain have been identified as the leading cause of global disability in 2015 in most countries (VOS). The lifetime prevalence of low back pain is reported to be 84 percent while the prevalence of chronic low back pain is around 23 percent. Moreover, between 11 and 12 percent of the population are considered disabled by low back pain. MAHER