title: Description of pain and the degree to which the complaints fit the organic diagnosis of low back pain.
abstract: Descriptions of pain were studied in 142 patients with low back complaints using a pain questionnaire derived from Leavitt. Firstly, the structure was determined by means of a principal components analysis for categorical data. The pain words can be grouped into 6 dimensions: evaluation, evaluation-intensity, constancy, sensory-pressing, sensory-pricking and sensory-cutting. A relation was found between the description of pain and the degree to which the complaints fit the organic diagnosis of low back pain. The nature and magnitude of this relation differed between centres.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001416:Back Pain / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012044:Regression Analysis; D013001:Somatoform Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014705:Verbal Behavior