In order to expedite the process of discovering a drug, the NCI researchers actively sought collaborations with pharmaceutical companies having access to libraries of compounds with potential antiviral activity. This assay could simultaneously test both the anti-HIV effect of the compounds and their toxicity against infected T cells. In June 1984, Burroughs-Wellcome virologist Marty St. Clair set up a program to discover drugs with the potential to inhibit HIV replication. Burroughs-Wellcome had expertise in nucleoside analogs and viral diseases, led by researchers including George Hitchings, Gertrude Elion, David Barry, Paul (Chip) McGuirt Jr., Philip Furman, Martha St. Clair, Janet Rideout, Sandra Lehrman and others. Their research efforts were focused in part on the viral enzyme reverse transcriptase. Reverse transcriptase is an enzyme that retroviruses, including HIV, utilize to replicate themselves. Secondary testing was performed in mouse cells infected with the retroviruses Friend virus or Harvey sarcoma virus, as the Wellcome group did not have a viable in-house HIV antiviral assay in place at that time, and these other retroviruses were believed to represent reasonable surrogates. AZT proved to be a remarkably potent inhibitor of both Friend virus and Harvey sarcoma virus, and a search of the companys records showed that it had demonstrated low toxicity when tested for its antibacterial activity in rats many years earlier.
However, if there are certain "red flag" symptoms present, plain radiographs (X-ray), CT scan or magnetic resonance imaging may be recommended. These red flags include:
History of cancer
Unexplained weight loss
Immunosuppression
Urinary infection
Intravenous drug use
Prolonged use of corticosteroids
Back pain not improved with conservative management
History of significant trauma
Minor fall or heavy lift in a potentially osteoporotic or elderly individual
Acute onset of urinary retention, overflow incontinence, loss of anal sphincter tone, or fecal incontinence
Saddle anesthesia
Global or progressive motor weakness in the lower limbs

Prevention
Moderate-quality evidence exists that suggests that the combination of education and exercise may reduce an individuals risk of developing an episode of low back pain. Lesser-quality evidence points to exercise alone as a possible deterrent to the risk of the condition. Management
Nonspecific pain
Patients with uncomplicated back pain should be encouraged to remain active and to return to normal activities. The management goals when treating back pain are to achieve maximal reduction in pain intensity as rapidly as possible, to restore the individuals ability to function in everyday activities, to help the patient cope with residual pain, to assess for side effects of therapy and to facilitate the patients passage through the legal and socioeconomic impediments to recovery. For many, the goal is to keep the pain at a manageable level to progress with rehabilitation, which then can lead to long-term pain relief.