[New practice guideline for spine related low back pain; anesthesiologists use a different classification system than general practitioners].

The practice guideline 'Invasive treatment of spine related low back pain' was recently released by the Netherlands Society of Anesthesiologists. This guideline evaluates the state of the art regarding the diagnosis and value of invasive treatment for facet joint pain, pain in the sacroiliac joint, coccygodynia, discogenic pain and the 'failed back surgery syndrome'. A new classification system for chronic low back pain was also proposed. The guideline was created in a methodologically sound manner, but the results are disappointing: the evaluated diagnoses remain disputable and the recommendations for the evaluated treatments are mostly based on expert opinion. The guideline lacks information on the scientific basis of the proposed new classification system, which makes its clinical usefulness questionable.