Medical-legal issues regarding patients with low back pain.

Low back pain can present legal issues that require input from the patient's treating physicians. Because low back pain can lead to partial or complete disability, either on a short-term or long-term basis, patients may be unable to earn a living, which may make it necessary for patients to seek government aid, personal insurance benefits, or insurance benefits through workers compensation or even, when the low back pain was caused by an incident that was the fault of a third party, through a personal injury claim lawsuit. This article reviews the legal issues relevant to low back pain.