Low back pain assessment for the medical acupuncturist

Low back pain frequently presents to medical acupuncturists, many of whom are general practitioners working in the public sector. Under these circumstances there is often limited time to devote to an initial assessment of a patient's presenting complaint. This paper presents an assessment process that is aimed at informing management decisions for medical acupuncturists, although much of the process may be useful to a wider range of practitioners. The assessment is divided into an initial screening procedure, and a further more detailed assessment. The initial screening procedure can usefully be applied in a brief consultation. Using this assessment tool, practitioners with medical acupuncture training will be able to select the cases most likely to be helped by their acupuncture skills.