Chiropractic
Chiropractic is a health care professional whose purpose is to diagnose and treat mechanical disorders of the spine and musculoskeletal system with the intention of affecting the nervous system and improving Health. It is based on the premise that a spinal joint dysfunction can interfere with the nervous system and result in many different conditions of diminished health.
Chiropractors use the term "subluxation" to describe such disruptions. Interruption of nerve flow can eventually lead to pain, disability, and an overall decrease in the quality of life. Conversely, the removal of that interference has been shown to have significant, lasting health benefits. Through the adjustment of the subluxation, the Doctor of chiropractic endeavors to restore normal nerve expression. The body is then able to respond appropriately to any imbalance in the system, thus relieving symptoms and restoring health
Chiropractic Philosophy
As a profession, the primary belief is in natural and conservative methods of health care. Doctors of chiropractic have a deep respect for the human body's ability to heal itself without the use of surgery or medication. Chiropractic physicians devote careful attention to the biomechanics, structure and function of the spine, its effects on the musculoskeletal and neurological systems, and the role played by the proper function of these systems in the preservation and restoration of health. A Doctor of chiropractic is one who is involved in the treatment and prevention of disease, as well as the promotion of public health, and a wellness approach to patient healthcare.
Safety in Chiropractic
The World Health Organization states that when "employed skillfully and appropriately, chiropractic care is safe and effective for the prevention and management of a number of health problems. The International Chiropractic Association (ICA) suggests that chiropractic is one of the safest health professions and chiropractors have some of the lowest malpractice insurance premiums in the health care industry. Records form insurance and court cases have constantly shown that chiropractic is the safest portal of entry health care available to the public today.
Although no healthcare procedures are 100% safe, chiropractic stands on its record of safety and effectiveness unmatched in healthcare. To learn more about the safety record of chiropractic please visit the website Chiropractic Is Safe at www.chiropracticissafe.org.
Research in Chiropractic
Numerous studies have shown that chiropractic treatment is both safe and effective. The following are excerpts from a few of the more recent studies. By examining the research supporting chiropractic care, you will find that chiropractic offers tremendous potential in meeting today’s health care challenges.
The Manga Report:
The Manga Report was an outcomes-study funded by the Ontario Ministry of Health and conducted by three health economists led by Professor Pran Manga.
The Report supported the scientific validity, safety, efficacy, and cost-effectiveness of chiropractic for low-back pain, and found that chiropractic care had higher patient satisfaction levels than conventional alternatives.
The report states that "The literature clearly and consistently shows that the major savings from chiropractic management come from fewer and lower costs of auxiliary services, fewer hospitalizations, and a highly significant reduction in chronic problems, as well as in levels and duration of disability.
American Medical Association (AMA)
The AMA (American Medical Association):
In 1997, the following statement was adopted as policy of the AMA; "Manipulation (Adjustment) has been shown to have a reasonably good degree of efficacy in ameliorating back pain, headache, and similar musculoskeletal complaints
WebMD:
WebMD has published several studies that promote the efficacy of chiropractic adjustments. The first of these was published on October 12, 2004. This study showed that not only did Chiropractic cut the cost of treating back pain by 28%, it also reduced hospitalizations by 41%, back surgeries by 32%, and reduced the cost of medical imaging, such as X-rays or MRIs, by 37%.
Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics:
For Acute and Chronic Pain; “Patients with chronic low-back pain treated by chiropractors showed greater improvement and satisfaction at one month than patients treated by family physicians. Satisfaction scores were higher for chiropractic patients. A higher proportion of chiropractic patients (56 percent vs. 13 percent) reported that their low-back pain was better or much better, whereas nearly one-third of medical patients reported their low-back pain was worse or much worse.”
-- Nyiendo et al (2000), Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics.
In Comparison to Other Treatment Alternatives; “Acute and chronic chiropractic patients experienced better outcomes in pain, functional disability, and patient satisfaction; clinically important differences in pain and disability improvement were found for chronic patients.”
-- Haas et al. (2005), Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics.
“The results of this study show that spinal manipulative therapy is an effective treatment for tension headaches. Four weeks after cessation of treatment, the patients who received spinal manipulative therapy experienced a sustained therapeutic benefit in all major outcomes in contrast to the patients that received amitriptyline therapy, who reverted to baseline values.” ‘
-- Boline et al. (1995), Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics.
Cost Effectiveness
“Chiropractic care appeared relatively cost-effective for the treatment of chronic low-back pain. Chiropractic and medical care performed comparably for acute patients. Practice-based clinical outcomes were consistent with systematic reviews of spinal manipulative efficacy: manipulation-based therapy is at least as good as and, in some cases, better than other therapeusis.”
--Haas et al. (2005), Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics.
British Medical Journal
In a Randomized controlled trial, 183 patients with neck pain were randomly allocated to manual therapy (spinal mobilization), physiotherapy (mainly exercise) or general practitioner care (counseling, education and drugs) in a 52-week study. The clinical outcomes measures showed that manual therapy resulted in faster recovery than physiotherapy and general practitioner care. Moreover, total costs of the manual therapy-treated patients were about one-third of the costs of physiotherapy or general practitioner care.
-- Korthals-de Bos et al. (2003), British Medical Journal.
Annals of Internal Medicine
“In our randomized, controlled trial, we compared the effectiveness of manual therapy, physical therapy, and continued care by a general practitioner in patients with nonspecific neck pain. The success rate at seven weeks was twice as high for the manual therapy group (68.3 percent) as for the continued care group (general practitioner). Manual therapy scored better than physical therapy on all outcome measures. Patients receiving manual therapy had fewer absences from work than patients receiving physical therapy or continued care, and manual therapy and physical therapy each resulted in statistically significant less analgesic use than continued care.”
– Hoving et al. (2002), Annals of Internal Medicine.
“Chiropractic is the largest, most regulated, and best recognized of the complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) professions. CAM patient surveys show that chiropractors are used more often than any other alternative provider group and patient satisfaction with chiropractic care is very high. There is steadily increasing patient use of chiropractic in the United States, which has tripled in the past two decades.”
– Meeker, Haldeman (2002), Annals of Internal Medicine.
Duke Evidence Report
For Headaches; “Cervical spine manipulation was associated with significant improvement in headache outcomes in trials involving patients with neck pain and/or neck dysfunction and headache.”
-- McCrory, Penzlen, Hasselblad, Gray (2001), Duke Evidence Report.
American Journal of Public Health
Patient Satisfaction
“Chiropractic patients were found to be more satisfied with their back care providers after four weeks of treatment than were medical patients. Results from observational studies suggested that back pain patients are more satisfied with chiropractic care than with medical care. Additionally, studies conclude that patients are more satisfied with chiropractic care than they were with physical therapy after six weeks.”
-- Hertzman-Miller et al. (2002), American Journal of Public Health.
Chiropractic Testimonials
"There is really no better profession than chiropractic. You really helped me…I depend on chiropractic and so does my whole family. I found it was better to go to the chiropractor before you get injured. Chiropractic is truly one of the few professions that really helps people in a straightforward way with no monkey business, like some of the other professions promise to help, but this chiropractic is the real thing. That's what chiropractors do, take care of people like no other kind of healer."Arnold Schwarzenegger
"I got a chiropractor to come along to the [Patriot] shoot, because they can actually stick you back together within 15 minutes. He used to come every other week, from Los Angeles to South Carolina—spend a week and work on the entire crew. The guy's amazing." Mel Gibson
"Thank God I have a great chiropractor. I wish I'd never introduced him to Madonna and Janet (Jackson) and Tina (Turner). Now I have to share him.'' Cher
"Chiropractic helps athletes and people working out, engaging in a sport or even just performing daily functions such as walking and sitting to operate at their peak levels of performance without pain. I highly recommend that you pay a visit to your local chiropractor." Dr. Joyce Vedral, Fitness Expert
"I've found that it's a great stress reliever to get adjusted. It takes away a lot of the tightness in the muscles and when calcium deposits form in the neck and lower back, adjustments seem to disperse the deposits." Jose Canseco, Retired MLB
"I have to have an adjustment before I go into the ring...I believe in chiropractic. The majority of boxers go to get that extra edge." Evander Holyfield
"I've been seeing a chiropractor and he's really been helping me out a lot. Chiropractic's been a big part of my game." Joe Montana and 35 of his teamates received chiropractic care right before the 1990 Super Bowl Game
"Being a chiropractic patient has really helped me a lot. When I was in a growth spurt, my back became very sore and I was weak. My chiropractor really helped me. Not only did he adjust my spine, he also gave me strengthening exercises to do. If you are tall and gangly like I am, or play sports, I would recommend chiropractic." Tiger Woods
"If not for chiropractic, I would not have won the gold medal! It is essential to me in my training routine. You obviously can't compete at your fullest if you're not in alignment. Every track and field athlete that I have ever met has seen a chiropractor at one time or another". Dan O'Brien, 1996 Olympic gold medalist, decathlon
