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SPINE & ORTHOPAEDIC CONDITIONS
This testimonial relates a genuine account of an individual’s response to the treatment, and does not provide any indication, guide, warranty or guarantee as to the response other persons may have to the treatment. Responses to the treatment may vary. Always consult your healthcare professional for a full list of benefits, indications, precautions, clinical results, and other important medical information that pertains to the therapy or products discussed.
Are you feeling pain in your leg, buttocks, groin, and lower spine? Sacroiliac joint dysfunction can be diagnosed by your doctor.
Download the Doctor Discussion Guide to prepare for your appointments and discuss your treatment options.
If your GP recommends further treatment, find a suitable specialist near you. Scroll down to use our find a specialist tool.
Your doctor will determine whether you have sacroiliac joint dysfunction by reviewing your medical history, taking x-rays, and reviewing the results from other tests you have completed. Sometimes doctors make a definitive diagnosis through treatment. Doctors may also perform a series of provocative tests.
Provocative tests
Provocative tests are a non-invasive method for diagnosing pain from the sacroiliac (SI) joint. A clinician such as a physical therapist, pelvic health specialist, or pain management specialist can perform these tests to help you diagnose SI joint disease or SI joint dysfunction.
During a provocative test, the clinician will perform a specific physical maneuver while you are lying in a particular position, in an attempt to recreate the pain. A positive result means the test recreated pain.
Positive results for at least three of the five provocative tests indicate that your SI joint is causing your pain. The five provocative tests are called:
This guide can help you clearly describe your symptoms to your doctor and ask questions that will help your doctor determine the treatment option that is suitable for you. Download and fill out the doctor discussion guide, then bring it to your next appointment.
References
*Britt, H., Miller, G., Henderson, J., Bayram, C., Harrison, C., Valenti, L., Pan, Y., Charles, J., Pollack, A., Wong, C. and Gordon, J. (2016). General Practice Activity in Australia 2015-16 Bettering the Evaluation and Care of Health GENERAL PRACTICE SERIES NUMBER 40. https://ses.library.usyd.edu.au/bitstream/2123/15514/5/9781743325148_ONLINE.pdf.
** Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. (2023). Back problems. Retrieved from https://www.aihw.gov.au/reports/chronic-musculoskeletal-conditions/back-problems.
⁺ Cohen, Steven P. Sacroiliac Joint Pain: A Comprehensive Review of Anatomy, Diagnosis, and Treatment. Anesth Analg2005;101:1440-1453.
