What are the major categories of low back pain?
• Mechanical: degenerative disk disease, nonspecific low back pain/strain (with or without psychogenic component), pregnancy, discogenic, spondylolisthesis, facet arthritis, fractures, etc.
• Radicular: foraminal nerve root compression, spinal stenosis.
• Inflammatory: ankylosing spondylitis.
• Infiltrative: cancer, infectious (osteomyelitis, abscess, and discitis).
• Referred: intraabdominal pathology (e.g., abdominal aneurysm, nephrolithiasis).
