Demographic and ED presentation characteristics
| Non-specific LBP (n=5461) | Radicular LBP (n=642) | Serious spinal pathology (n=290) | Total (n=6393) | |
| Gender, female, n (%) | 2738 (50.1) | 346 (53.9) | 116 (40) | 3200 (50.1) |
| Age (years), mean (SD) | 51.8 (20.4) | 56.7 (18.3) | 55.6 (20.3) | 52.4 (20.2) |
| Adults, n (%) | 3838 (70.3) | 397 (61.8) | 186 (64.1) | 4421 (69.1) |
| Older adults (≥65 years), n (%) | 1623 (29.7) | 245 (38.2) | 104 (35.9) | 1972 (30.9) |
| Mode of arrival, n (%) | ||||
| Ambulance | 1769 (32.4) | 146 (22.7) | 96 (33.1) | 2011 (31.4) |
| Public transport | 134 (2.4) | 10 (1.5) | 10 (3.4) | 154 (2.4) |
| Internal bed/wheelchair | 3 (0.01) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 3 (0.01) |
| Walked in | 587 (10.7) | 49 (7.6) | 31 (10.6) | 667 (10.4) |
| Private car | 2959 (54.2) | 436 (67.9) | 153 (153 (52.7) | 3548 (55.5) |
| Other | 8 (0.1) | 1 (0.1) | 0 (0.0) | 9 (0.1) |
| Triage category*, n (%) | ||||
| 1 | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) | 0 (0.0) |
| 2 | 93 (1.7) | 1 (0.1) | 22 (7.6) | 116 (1.8) |
| 3 | 2039 (37.3) | 175 (27.2) | 103 (35.5) | 2317 (36.2) |
| 4 | 3164 (57.9) | 441 (68.7) | 150 (51.7) | 3755 (58.7) |
| 5 | 165 (3.0) | 25 (3.9) | 15 (5.1) | 205 (3.21) |
| Weekend presentations, n (%) | 1627 (29.8) | 162 (25.2) | 79 (27.2) | 1868 (29.2) |
| Presentation during working hours, n (%)† | 2198 (40.2) | 307 (47.8) | 139 (47.9) | 2644 (41.3) |
| ED length of stay (h), median (IQR) | 4 (2–5) | 3 (2–4) | 4 (3–6) | 4 (2–5) |
| ED representation within 48 hours, n (%) | 50 (0.9) | 10 (1.5) | 3 (1.0) | 63 (0.9) |
| Admitted to hospital, n (%) | 898 (16.4) | 106 (16.5) | 125 (43.1) | 1129 (17.6) |
| Hospital length of stay (days), median (IQR) | 6 (3–12) | 4 (3–9) | 5 (2–9) | 6 (3–12) |
*Australasian Triage Scale (ATS)
ED, emergency department; LBP, low back pain.