Spine
Lumbar disc herniation
Lumbar disc herniation is followed with back-specific disability measures, chosen for their responsiveness in surgical rather than primary-care populations.
What you are actually deciding
The Oswestry is the dominant outcome in lumbar discectomy series and is therefore the most comparable choice. Recording leg pain separately from back pain matters, because discectomy relieves the two very differently.
Patient-reported outcome measure3
- Modified Oswestry Calculator10 itemsModified Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability QuestionnaireThe Modified Oswestry Low Back Pain Disability Questionnaire is the Oswestry with one change — an employment and homemaking section replaces the sex life section — scored the same way: ten sections rated 0 to 5, added and doubled to give a percentage from 0% (no disability) to 100% (maximum disability).
- ODI Calculator10 itemsOswestry Disability IndexThe Oswestry Disability Index measures how far low back pain restricts ten everyday activities, scoring each section from 0 to 5 and expressing the total as a percentage from 0% (no disability) to 100% (maximum disability).
- RMDQ Calculator24 itemsRoland-Morris Disability QuestionnaireThe Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire measures physical disability from low back pain by counting how many of 24 statements a patient agrees with, giving a score from 0 (no disability) to 24 (maximum disability).
Thresholds that apply here
Published change thresholds across the instruments above. Check the population matches your patient before using a value — a threshold derived in a different cohort will mislead you.
| Instrument | Type | Value | Subscale | Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ODI | MCID | 10 percentage points | — | Chronic low back pain |
| ODI | MCID | 12.8 points | — | Lumbar spine surgery |
| ODI | MCID | 30% change from baseline | — | Low back pain, IMMPACT consensus recommendation |
| ODI | MDC | 10–15 points | — | Chronic low back pain |
| RMDQ | MCID | 2–3 points | — | Acute low back pain |
| RMDQ | MCID | 5 points | — | Chronic low back pain |
| RMDQ | MCID | 30% change from baseline | — | Low back pain, recommended by the IMMPACT consensus |
| RMDQ | MDC | 4–5 points | — | Chronic low back pain |
See the full threshold database for every instrument on the site.