A Primer on Examination and Treatment Metrics

Course overview

In this course, learners will be introduced to the Pain and Disability Drivers Management model and gain a greater understanding of the metrics that govern the examination and treatment processes. The examination process is based fundamentally on an understanding of epidemiology and measures such as prevalence and incidence. Examination metrics include measures like sensitivity, specificity, and likelihood ratios, applied with the goal of modifying pretest probability to get closer to some diagnosis (ruling in) and further away from others (ruling out). The goal of intervention is to produce superior patient outcomes. This course will provide a brief overview of outcome measures and discuss common treatment metrics, including p-value, effect size, and number needed to treat. In addition, prognostic factors will be discussed as they relate to outcomes and important measures like the minimal detectable change. This course is part of a comprehensive clinical series covering examination and intervention for the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine, as well as the upper (shoulder, elbow, wrist, and hand) and lower (hip, pelvis, knee, foot, and ankle) quarters.