For people experiencing painful joint or spinal problems, the answer to this question is often yes. The belief is that if we could just see inside the body, the cause of the problem would be clear and the solution evident.

If only it was this simple! Of course, x-rays and scans are of great value in certain clinical situations eg fractures, osteoporosis and arthritic diseases. What they don’t do, however, is explain pain.

The most likely finding following an x-ray or scan is degenerative changes. Degenerative changes occur when joint surfaces become scuffed and less smooth, or soft tissues such as discs become drier and less spongy. This is much like developing grey hairs and wrinkles.

Genetics and lifestyle (eg smoking and poor diet) may speed up this process but degenerative changes will occur in all of us eventually.

And so it cannot be possible for degenerative changes per se to cause pain - otherwise our clinic would be full of over 55’s (it isn’t!) and the nation’s elderly would all be in agony (they aren’t!)

Often there isn’t a direct relationship between x ray findings and a patient’s clinical presentation. A patient might have a hugely restricted and painful hip suggestive of severe osteoarthritis with little evidence on x-ray. Conversely, a patient may have gross degenerative changes on x-ray but complain of little more than a minor discomfort whilst running.

So, rather than an x-ray or scan, a thorough assessment and detailed examination is often far more useful in working out the cause of your problem and how best to treat it.