Physical therapy is as effective as surgery for lumbar spinal stenosis, study finds

@article{Wise2015PhysicalTI,
  title={Physical therapy is as effective as surgery for lumbar spinal stenosis, study finds},
  author={Jacqui Wise},
  journal={BMJ : British Medical Journal},
  year={2015},
  volume={350}
}
  • J. Wise
  • Published 6 April 2015
  • Medicine
  • BMJ : British Medical Journal
Surgical decompression treatment for lumbar spinal stenosis is no better than physical therapy in improving symptoms and function, a randomised controlled trial has shown. The study, published in the Annals of Internal Medicine ,1 showed that both groups of patients began to show improvement at 10 weeks and continued to improve through 26 weeks. Improvements were maintained in both groups at the … 
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References

Surgery Versus Nonsurgical Treatment of Lumbar Spinal Stenosis
TLDR
It is believed that with such a minuscule crossover rate in the surgical group, the study achieved the goal of reducing crossover in 1 group, allowing for meaningful intention-to-treat analyses, and it is impossible to perfectly compare surgical versus nonsurgical care.