Spinal arachnoiditis. What is the clinical spectrum? I.

Back pain has been estimated to affect about two thirds of the adult population. In most instances the pain is brief and self-limited, but at other times it may be chronic. Although the cause of discomfort may be apparent at times, in many extensively evaluated cases it is not. Chronic arachnoiditis is infrequently considered in the differential diagnosis of back pain. A literature review of arachnoiditis includes only anecdotal cases and series, emphasizing the most severe clinical findings. It is suggested that arachnoiditis may have a place in the differential diagnosis of chronic back pain.