Free online courseLumbar Spine assessment

Course Description

Build the confidence to assess low back presentations with a clear, repeatable lumbar spine assessment approach designed for real clinical decision-making. This free online course guides you through a full run-through and the core components clinicians rely on to understand pain behavior, identify relevant findings, and determine when further referral may be needed. If you are a physiotherapy student, a newly qualified clinician, or returning to musculoskeletal practice, you will strengthen the habits that make assessments smoother, faster, and more defensible.

You will learn how to start with structured observation, picking up key postural and movement clues that can influence your hypotheses. From there, the course helps you develop more reliable palpation and movement testing, improving your ability to distinguish what is meaningful from what is simply incidental. You will also practice a consistent way to describe symptoms and responses during active range of motion testing, helping you communicate findings accurately and compare changes over time.

A major focus is integrating a lower limb neurological screen into your lumbar spine assessment. You will refine your reasoning around myotomes, dermatomes, reflexes, and neural tension testing so you can better interpret signs that may point toward nerve root involvement or more complex presentations. Along the way, you will connect what you see and feel to practical next steps, improving your ability to justify treatment direction, reassess effectively, and document your examination with clarity.

By the end, you will have a more systematic framework for assessing the lumbar spine, a stronger grasp of neurological testing principles, and a smoother workflow you can apply in practice settings. Complete the learning activities to check your understanding and, if available, claim your certificate as evidence of your upskilling.