Figure 1

Impairment of movements involved in everyday activities on the day of study entry (Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire subscale, Table 2) vs. magnitude of "bodily pain" (SF-36) in the month prior to study entry. The patients are Maine Lumbar Spine Study sciatica cohort patients who subsequently chose nonsurgical (left) or surgical treatment (right). Some y axis values have been slightly altered to let the reader estimate the number of patients with overlapping data points. Not surprisingly, patients with more pain report limitation of more activities.