Investigation of Acute Lower Back Pain in Ontario: Are Guidelines Being Followed?

Low back pain (LBP) will be experienced by more than 70 percent of people throughout the developed world at some point in their lifetime. This report examines the use of radiology for LBP in Ontario, reviews Ontario-specific and international guidelines for clinical management of LBP, and explores temporal and geographic trends of lumbar spine X-rays, spinal CT and MRI across the province.