Oregon State Evidence Based Low Back Pain Guidelines -Final

[Guest guest]

Dear colleagues,

I am very please to forward the final Oregon State guidelines for Low Back Pain which the Oregon Chiropractic Association gave key input and testimony too during several months of their development and we made a real difference colleagues the gravity of which will play out over the next several years. I will need to scan (Christmas present to myself...is a scanner ...finally!) the original draft guidelines that caused the OCA to spring into action, our subsequent input over that time significantly changed the flavor of these guidelines which in the end thanks to the OCA reduced the focus on drugs...drugs...and more drugs....to the non-pharmacological interventions with spinal manipulation leading the way! Thanks to your only state trade association which is looking out for you the state of Oregon ...drum roll please....only recommends spinal manipulation during the first four weeks of acute low back pain! None of the other non-drug interventions made the grade ONLY SMT!! This is found on page 9 of the guidelines which I have provided the link to below.....also the OCA's input also caused the algorithm on page 7 which had a focus on surgery for radiculopathy and lumbar stenosis only...with NO contingency for non-surgical interventions (e.g. flexion distraction, side posture spinal manipulation) for these conditions which have strong evidence of their effectiveness...the final algorithm has been changed due to OCA input...and the term surgery no longer even appears but "continued conservative care" does! Again to gain the significance of what has happened I will need to scan the original draft algorithm and post it to the list serve...in fact I will do so with a side by side comparision........We are making a difference colleagues we are making a difference...and we will not take our collective feet off the gas pedal, we will not slow down, we will not be deterred, we will never yield, we will press on to that mountain top TOGETHER!!

Here is the link, www.oregon.gov/OHA/OHPR/HSC/docs/GL/LBPFinal.pdf

Merry Chirstmas,

Vern Saboe