Acute Low Back Problems in Adults

In December 1994, the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR, a division of the US Department of Health and Human Services) released a clinical practice guideline entitled Acute Low Back Problems in Adults. The guideline was developed by a 23-member expert multidisciplinary panel, using rigorous scientific methodology. The guideline concluded that relief of discomfort of low back pain can be accomplished most safely by only two methods: non-prescription medication and/or spinal manipulation. Most other therapies currently in use for the treatment of low back pain were found to be either ineffective or unsubstantiated by scientific research. Side-effects associated with the use of medication were found to be greater than those associated with manipulation, which were very limited.