title: Quality of life in preoperative patients with sacroiliac joint dysfunction is at least as depressed as in other lumbar spinal conditions.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Pain from the sacroiliac joint (SIJ) is an under-recognized cause of low back pain. The degree to which SIJ pain decreases quality of life has not been directly compared to other more familiar conditions of the lumbar spine.
  
  
  METHODS
  Multivariate regression analysis of individual patient data from two prospective multicenter clinical trials of SIJ fusion and three prospective multicenter clinical trials of surgical treatments for degenerative lumbar spine conditions.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Controlling for baseline demographic parameters as well as a validated disability score, quality of life scores (EuroQOL 5-D and SF-36) were, in most cases, lower in the SIJ cohorts compared to the three other spine surgery cohorts.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Patients with SIJ dysfunction considering surgery have decrements in quality of life as or more severe compared to patients with degenerative spondylolisthesis, spinal stenosis, and intervertebral disc herniation.
authors.affiliation: SI-BONE, Inc., San Jose, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Daniel Joseph
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Cher
authors.affiliation: SI-BONE, Inc., San Jose, CA, USA.
authors.forename: W Carlton
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Reckling
keywords: degenerative spondylolisthesis; disability; intervertebral disc herniation; low back pain; lumbar stenosis; sacroiliac joint fusion; sacroiliac joint pain; spine surgery