Referral results from the secondary care setting
| Screening method | No. of patients identified using this cutoff | No. of patients undergoing surgery | Sensitivity, % | Specificity, % | Positive predictive value, % | Negative predictive value, % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Questionnaire | ||||||
| More sensitive (i.e., clearly back-dominant pain) | ||||||
| Yes — Poor candidate for surgery | 18 | 0 | 100 | 35 | 18 | 100 |
| No — Good candidate for surgery | 40 | 7 | ||||
| More specific (i.e., leg-dominant pain) | ||||||
| Yes — Good candidate for surgery | 20 | 6 | 86 | 73 | 30 | 97 |
| No — Poor candidate for surgery | 38 | 1 | ||||
| Neurocompressive lesion on CT or MRI scans | ||||||
| Yes — Good candidate for surgery | 45 | 7 | 100 | 25 | 16 | 100 |
| No — Poor candidate for surgery | 13 | 0 | ||||
| Referral from pain specialist | ||||||
| Yes — Good candidate for surgery | 27 | 6 | 86 | 59 | 22 | 97 |
| No — Poor candidate for surgery | 31 | 1 | ||||
CT = computed tomography; MRI = magnetic resonance imaging.