Answer to the Letter to the Editor of Soundararajan DCR et al. concerning “Bacteria: back pain, leg pain and Modic sign—A surgical multicentre comparative study” by Fritzell P, et al. (Eur Spine J [2019]; doi:10.1007/s00586-019-06164-1) (original) (raw)

This correspondence addresses the methodologies applied in a previous study investigating the association between bacteria and back pain, specifically focusing on the lack of significant findings regarding bacterial presence in disc and vertebra samples. The author emphasizes that DNA analyses, conducted with PCR in two laboratories, failed to detect bacterial DNA in 98% of samples, suggesting no direct infectious cause for back pain. Additionally, standard culturing techniques identified Cutibacterium acnes but indicate its ubiquitous nature as a skin microbe, reinforcing the conclusion that neither method supported the hypothesis of bacterial infection as a causative factor in back pain.