Despite its accuracy and honesty, the term is long and conveys the sense that the doctor does not know what is going on. Against this background it is not surprising that general practitioners lack a decent vocabulary for labelling a patient's back pain. Their sample showed considerable variation in the terms used. Nevertheless, the study reveals the need for standardisation. Diagnostic labels are important in the management of patients.
Patients expect a name for their condition.
A label shows that the doctor knows what is wrong. But such labels should not be incorrect or specious, lest they lead to therapeutic misadventure. Zygapophysial joint pain and discogenic pain can not be diagnosed clinically 3,4 and are, at best, suppositions. Some labels are simply wrong and can have deleterious effects. Moreover, disc degeneration, spondylosis and spinal ostoearthrosis correlate poorly with pain and may be totally asymptomatic.