WTP5.4 The Sheen Paajanen groin Recommended Treatment ‘SPoRT’ score for groin pain

Abstract

Abstract Aim Evaluating groin pain still evades many clinicians with at times difficulty in determining the cause of pain when no true hernia exists. This study’s aim was to evaluate a simple and novel scoring system which is reproducible, to help determine whether conservative measures or surgery is recommended for the management of groin pain attributable to inguinal disruption. Methods A retrospective analysis of all patients from 2018 - 2020 that underwent surgery or conservative management for inguinal disruption with at least a 1 year follow up were evaluated. The scoring system is based on MRI and ultrasound imaging as well as clinical findings, with scores given from -2 to +2 based on the defined findings listed. Sensitivity and specificity analysis was conducted for each potential score cut off point. Results A total of 172 patients were evaluated with 33 patients (19%) undergoing conservative management and 139 patients (81%) undergoing surgery. The mean SPoRT score of the physiotherapy group was statistically significantly lower than that of the surgery group (-1.33 vs 1.84, p = 3.55 x 10-25). An optimal cut off of ≤ 0 for physio and ≥ 1 for surgery was established, yielding a sensitivity of 90.9% (95% CI: 75.7% - 0.981%), a specificity of 89.2% (95% CI: 82.8% - 93.8%) and an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.9356 (95% CI: 0.874 – 0.997). Conclusion SPoRT score of ≤ 0 can recommend a patient should undergo conservative measures or physiotherapy as a mainstay of treatment with a score of ≥ 1 recommending surgery.