Comparative Analysis of the Pain Provocation Test and the HABER Test to Diagnose Nonspecific Low-Back Pain Associated with the Sacroiliac Joint

BACKGROUND This study aimed to investigate the correlation between the pain provocation test and the hip abduction-external rotation (HABER) test for diagnosing low-back pain (LBP)-related sacroiliac joint (SIJ) syndrome, and to determine the efficacy of the HABER test as a potential diagnostic tool for SIJ syndrome. MATERIAL AND METHODS One hundred patients with LBP participated. The first and second examiner examined the patients using the pain provocation test and the HABER test, respectively. Positive and negative findings were analyzed to determine the correlation and reliability. RESULTS The HABER test showed similar pain reproduction in groups that were positive or negative for SIJ syndrome (P<0.05). Based on the analysis of the receiver-operating characteristic curve, the cutoff values from the HABER test were found to be 29° and 32° of external rotation in the left and right hip joints, respectively. CONCLUSIONS The HABER test can reproduce similar level of pain in patients with chronic LBP associated with SIJ syndrome, and it can be used as a diagnostic tool in patients presenting with chronic LBP.