• Samuel Lapkin, Stone Sima, Zachary Gan, and Ashish D Diwan.
• Faculty of Health, Southern Cross University, Bilinga, Queensland, Australia.
• Curr Med Res Opin. 2024 Feb 1; 40 (2): 259265259-265.

BackgroundThe substantial burden of low back pain on patients and healthcare systems is exacerbated by unclear pathology and ineffective diagnostic methods, hindering effective management. The painDETECT questionnaire (PD-Q) has been used to facilitate the evaluation and categorization of low back pain. While preliminary validation and translations of the paper-based format of PD-Q into languages such as Spanish and Dutch have been accomplished, the underlying factor model inherent to the electronic format of the PD-Q remains to be established.ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to utilise confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) to investigate the factor structure of an electronic format PD-Q among patients with neuropathic low back pain.MethodsThis cross-sectional study was conducted at a Spinal Clinic in Sydney between November 2020 and October 2022. Eligible participants were adults over 18 with low back pain and no history of lumbar surgery or systemic co-morbidities. Participants completed the electronic format of the PD-Q, and CFA was employed to assess the validity of the suggested two-factor, nine-item structure. Recommended cut-offs for goodness-of-fit indices were used to evaluate the model fit.ResultsOf the 236 patients that visited the clinic during the data collection period, 142 (71, 50% female, mean age 51.26 ± 15.28 years) participated in the study. Median pain severity was 9/10 over 4 weeks. CFA indicated strong model fit, with goodness-of-fit and comparative fit indices over 0.9, and overall internal consistency was 0.77. Construct validity analysis demonstrated the PD-Q's effectiveness in distinguishing neuropathic, mixed, and nociceptive LBP, aiding neuropathic pain evaluation in low back pain patients.ConclusionThis study confirms the reliability and two-factor structure of the electronic PD-Q for neuropathic pain assessment in low back pain patients. To enhance comprehension of the clinical applicability of the electronic format PD-Q, future research should conduct clinimetric evaluations.

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