RESULTS The results of this review confirm and help quantify the significant differences that existed in the terminology and all the areas of diagnosis and treatment of presumed discogenic pain .
Our findings show that suspected discogenic pain , despite its extensive affirmation in the literature and enormous re sources regularly devoted to it , currently lacks clear diagnostic criteria and uniform treatment or terminology
BACKGROUND CONTEXT Pain innate to intervertebral disc , often referred to as discogenic pain , is suspected by some authors to be the major source of chronic low back and neck pain .
Current management of suspected discogenic pain lacks st and ardized diagnosis , treatment , and terminology .
PURPOSE In an attempt to determine whether patterns existed that may facilitate st and ardization of care , we sought to analyze the terminologies used and the various modes of diagnosis and treatment of suspected discogenic pain .
Intradiscal Electrothermal Treatment for Chronic Discogenic Low Back Pain: Prospective Outcome Study With a Minimum 2-Year Follow-Up
Study Design . Prospect i ve longitudinal study with a minimum 2-year follow-up . Objective . To assess the long-term outcome of a group of patients with chronic discogenic low back pain who had failed to improve with comprehensive nonoperative care and who were subsequently treated with intradiscal electrothermal therapy ( IDET ) .  Summary of Background Data . Previous reports of patient outcomes at 1 year after IDET have demonstrated statistically significant improvement . Methods . The study group comprised 58 patients with chronic symptoms of more than 6 months who failed to improve with nonoperative care and subsequently underwent IDET .  VAS pain scores , SF-36 scores , and sitting tolerance times were collected pretreatment and at 6 , 12 , and 24 months . Results . Mean duration of pre-IDET symptoms was 60.7 months . The minimum follow-up at data collection was 24 months . The study group ( n = 58 ) demonstrated a significant improvement in pain as demonstrated by statistically significant improvement in VAS scores and bodily pain SF-36 scores . The IDET-treated group demonstrated a significant improvement in physical function as noted by statistically significant improvement in sitting tolerance times and physical function SF-36 scores . Bodily pain and physical function scores demonstrated significant improvement between the 1- and 2-year observation points . Additionally , quality of life improvement was demonstrated by a statistically significant improvement in all the SF-36 subscales . Conclusions . A cohort of patients with chronic discogenic low back pain who had failed to improve with comprehensive nonoperative care demonstrated a statistically significant improvement in pain , physical function , and quality of life at 2 years after IDET
RESULTS The results of this review confirm and help quantify the significant differences that existed in the terminology and all the areas of diagnosis and treatment of presumed discogenic pain .
Our findings show that suspected discogenic pain , despite its extensive affirmation in the literature and enormous re sources regularly devoted to it , currently lacks clear diagnostic criteria and uniform treatment or terminology
BACKGROUND CONTEXT Pain innate to intervertebral disc , often referred to as discogenic pain , is suspected by some authors to be the major source of chronic low back and neck pain .
Current management of suspected discogenic pain lacks st and ardized diagnosis , treatment , and terminology .
PURPOSE In an attempt to determine whether patterns existed that may facilitate st and ardization of care , we sought to analyze the terminologies used and the various modes of diagnosis and treatment of suspected discogenic pain .