Spine
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Multicenter Study
Intertester reliability of McKenzie's classifications of the syndrome types present in patients with low back pain.
The McKenzie system for examining and treating patients with low back pain is frequently used by clinicians. The primary purpose of this multicenter study was to determine the intertester reliability of assessments of patients with low back pain when physical therapists used the McKenzie method. A second purpose was to determine if previous postgraduate training in the McKenzie system affects reliability. ⋯ Therapists agreed on which syndrome was present 39% of the time. Previous postgraduate training did not improve reliability. The results suggest that assessments of the syndrome present in patients with low back pain appear to be unreliable when using the McKenzie system.