Subdomain and COMET outcomes identified from interviews
| COMET domain outcome | Subdomain outcomes | No of 18 patients (%) | Example of interview transcript (Chinese words presented in English) |
| Function | Function | 17 (94.4) | “This waist does not seem to be as flexible as before……” |
| ADL | 14 (77.8) | “I felt hard to get dressed, brush teeth, wash face, or go to toilet……” | |
| ROM | 3 (16.7) | “I felt hard to back straight or bend over (in some degrees)” | |
| Symptoms | 16 (88.9) | “Pain is on my low back and legs, makes me hard to move anymore (or in certain distance)” | |
| Measure of walking | 16 (88.9) | “I can't walk long way, I felt my legs do not work, and then I have to stop for a rest ……” | |
| Global rating of change | 2 (11.1) | “I would like to feel wellbeing, ……, even for a while” | |
| Pain | pain | 18 (100) | “I cannot get into sleep due to pain when I tried to turn over on bed” |
| Adverse events | AE | 16 (88.9) | “Is that (the treatment) safe? Are there any side effects?” |
| Physiological | Inflammatory markers | 0 (0) | nr |
| Haemorheological markers | 0 (0) | nr | |
| Immunological markers | 0 (0) | nr | |
| Physiological markers | 0 (0) | nr | |
| Radiographic changes | 2 (11.1) | “(Treatment) helps me release the narrowing of space and pressure of nerves, I would feel well” | |
| CM indicator | CM meridian | 0 (0) | nr |
| CM Zheng | 1 (5.5) | “Can Chinese medicine help to treat blood stasis pattern?” | |
| Mental health | Mental health | 12 (66.7) | “It always hurts and pain seems not to be relieved, so I felt some irritable, and worried as it is getting more serious” |
| Satisfaction | Satisfaction index | 1 (5.5) | “I felt satisfied if it (treatment) can relieve my pain and help me walk long” |
| Quality of life | Quality of life | 5 (27.8) | “Low back pain affects life, and the most impact of pain is on my quality of life” |
| Psychosocial | Psychosocial | 4 (22.2) | “I was really worried because I was younger and worried about my professional longevity.……I couldn't hang out with my family, it was always a drag on my family, and I had to let them take care of me” |
| Compliance | Adherence and attrition | 1 (5.5) | “You have to listen to the doctor, and the efficacy would be guaranteed” |
| Resource use | Resource use | 3 (16.7) | “Treatment wastes lots of time on transportation and waiting, but I have to (do it) due to pain” |
ADL, activities of daily living; AE, adverse event; CM, Chinese medicine; COMET, Core Outcome Measures in Effectiveness Trials; nr, not reported; ROM, range of movement.