Table 1 Prevalence of classification for two, six and eight subcategories for each of the five raters
Rater 1 | Rater 2 | Rater 3 | Rater 4 | Rater 5 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Two categories: | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) |
Inappropriate referrals for MRI | 41 (82) | 40 (80) | 39 (78) | 40 (80) | 42 (84) |
Appropriate referrals for MRI | 9 (18) | 10 (20) | 11 (22) | 10 (20) | 8 (16) |
Six subcategories | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) |
Inappropriate referrals for MRI | |||||
1 No information on previous treatment and duration | 41 (82) | 40 (80) | 39 (78) | 40 (80) | 42 (84) |
Appropriate referrals for MRI | |||||
2 Fracture | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) |
3 Cancer, infection, immunosuppression or spondylarthritis | 5 (10) | 5 (10) | 6 (12) | 5 (10) | 4 (8) |
4 Persistent/progressive symptoms after six weeks of treatment | 0 (0) | 2 (4) | 1 (2) | 1 (2) | 0 (0) |
5 Prior lumbar surgery and new or progressing symptoms | 4 (8) | 3 (6) | 4 (8) | 4 (8) | 4 (8) |
6 Cauda equina syndrome / progressive neurologic deficit | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) |
Eight subcategories: | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) | n (%) |
Inappropriate referrals for MRI | |||||
1 No information on previous treatment | 23 (46) | 24 (48) | 20 (40) | 25 (50) | 26 (52) |
2 No information on duration of previous treatment | 18 (36) | 16 (32) | 19 (38) | 15 (30) | 16 (32) |
3 Other reasons | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) |
Appropriate referrals for MRI | |||||
4 Fracture | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) |
5 Cancer, infection, immunosuppression or spondylarthritis | 5 (10) | 5 (10) | 6 (12) | 5 (10) | 4 (8) |
6 Persistent/progressive symptoms after six weeks of treatment | 0 (0) | 2 (4) | 1 (2) | 1 (2) | 0 (0) |
7 Prior lumbar surgery and new or progressing symptoms | 4 (8) | 3 (6) | 4 (8) | 4 (8) | 4 (8) |
8 Cauda equina syndrome / progressive neurologic deficit | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) |