You aren't your X-ray

​(An excerpt from my free e-book, along with links to learn more.)
 
MRIs and other imaging tests, including CT scans and X-rays, can add to this nocebo effect by
medically legitimizing the pain. Testing can be misleading and open to interpretation, indicating that something is wrong even when there is no pain, or showing that there's nothing wrong even when pain persists.
 
Research has found a poor correlation between the presence of imaging abnormalities and the experience of pain. In fact, pain and diagnostic imaging abnormalities are often part of the normal aging process. Take back pain, for example. Although back pain is a common medical complaint, no specific cause is found in up to 85% of cases.
 
It's no wonder that patients with chronic pain often overuse the medical system in their attempt to find a biological cause and solution to their pain. That same overutilization can lead to more worry, more diagnostic testing, and more potentially unhelpful or even harmful treatment options.
 
Learn more

• The associations between magnetic resonance imaging findings and low back pain: A 10-year longitudinal analysis
• Systematic literature review of imaging features of spinal degeneration in asymptomatic populations
• Central Sensitization in Chronic Low Back Pain: A Narrative Review
• Making Sense of Disabling Back Pain - Peter O’Sullivan Koadlow Lecture 2021 (1:30:29)
• Chronic pain Won;t Stop Me (my free e-book)