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The lumbar facet joint: a review of current knowledge: Part II: diagnosis and management

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Abstract

This article is the second article in a two-part review on lumbar facet joint pathology. In this review, we discuss the current concepts and controversies regarding the proper diagnosis and management of patients presenting with presumed facet-mediated lower back pain. All efforts were made to include the most relevant literature from the fields of radiology, orthopaedics, physiatry, and pain management. Our focus in this article is on presenting the evidence supporting or refuting the most commonly employed injection-based therapies for facet-mediated lower back pain.

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Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. NYU School of Medicine, Rusk Institute of Rehabilitation Medicine, 317 East 34th Street, 5th Floor, New York, NY, 10016, USA

    Gerard P. Varlotta & Todd R. Lefkowitz

  2. The Ottawa Hospital, The University of Ottawa, 501 Smyth, Module S-1, Ottawa, ON, Canada

    Mark Schweitzer

  3. NYU School of Medicine, 530 First Avenue, Suite 8U, New York, NY, 10016, USA

    Thomas J. Errico

  4. NYU School of Medicine, 301 East 17th Street, New York, NY, 10010, USA

    Jeffrey Spivak, John A. Bendo & Leon Rybak

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  1. Gerard P. Varlotta
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  2. Todd R. Lefkowitz
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  3. Mark Schweitzer
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  4. Thomas J. Errico
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Correspondence to Todd R. Lefkowitz.

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Varlotta, G.P., Lefkowitz, T.R., Schweitzer, M. et al. The lumbar facet joint: a review of current knowledge: Part II: diagnosis and management. Skeletal Radiol 40, 149–157 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-010-0984-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-010-0984-3

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