Neck Manipulation vs. Ibuprofen: New Evidence on Dissection Risk
Breaking News

Neck Manipulation vs. Ibuprofen: New Evidence on Dissection Risk

No Evidence of Increased Risk After DC-Administered Cervical SMT Compared With Ibuprofen

Neck pain and headache, both individually and co-occurring, are common reasons to seek chiropractic care. Each can also be an early sign of cervical artery dissection. An unrecognized dissection already in progress can bring a patient into a chiropractic clinic. If a stroke then occurs following cervical manipulation, some may assume that the manipulation caused the stroke. A 2026 analysis suggests cervical SMT is not associated with a higher subsequent dissection rate than care involving an ibuprofen prescription.

Dynamic Chiropractic Staff
Current Issue
Get the Issue
Upcoming Webinar
Editor's Picks
Education & Seminars
CCE to Withdraw From Federal Recognition, Pursue Opportunity for Enhanced Innovation
CCE to Withdraw From Federal Recognition, Pursue Opportunity for Enhanced Innovation

Like education itself, accreditation continues to evolve. Proposed requirements from the U.S. Department of Education (USDE), which recognizes accrediting agencies, are accelerating that change and creating uncertainty. After careful consideration, CCE concluded that these requirements would impose substantial burdens while providing limited to no additional benefit to chiropractic programs, students or the public; and has voted to begin the necessary steps for withdrawing from the USDE recognition process.

Craig S. Little, EdD
Chronic / Acute Conditions
Treating Fascia, Relieving Severe Musculoskeletal Problems
Treating Fascia, Relieving Severe Musculoskeletal Problems

Fascia is a collagen‑ and elastin‑rich tissue that combines tensile strength with elasticity and possesses its own contractile behavior. When muscle activity begins, mechanoreceptors such as muscle spindles relay rapid feedback to the central nervous system, and this requires fascia with healthy viscosity so that spindle cells, Pacini, and Ruffini receptors can deform and glide normally.

Jeffrey Tucker, DC, DACRB
Listen to this article
Diagnosis & Diagnostic Equip
When Radiculopathy Isn’t Radiculopathy: A Clinical Series (Pt. 4)
Supscapularis Syndrome
Supscapularis Syndrome: The Upper-Extremity Analog to Piriformis Syndrome

Subscapularis syndrome is introduced here as a clinically relevant and underrecognized source of upper-extremity pseudo-radiculopathy. Similar to piriformis syndrome, it reflects a functional disorder in which deep stabilizing muscle dysfunction – rather than primary nerve-root compression – drives symptoms that mimic radiculopathy.

Ken Kaufman, DC
Listen to this article
Featured

From Search to Selection: Why AI Visibility Matters for DCs

And How to Become the Provider AI Recommends Most

Patients are no longer just searching; they are asking. Consumers increasingly use AI-powered platforms such as ChatGPT, Google Gemini and Perplexity to ask complete questions in conversational language. Instead of typing “chiropractor Miami,” patients may ask, “What is the best nonsurgical treatment for sciatica?” or “Who helps pregnant women with low back pain near me? This shift represents one of the biggest changes in healthcare marketing since the rise of Google itself.

Mark Sanna, DC, ACRB Level II, FICC
Listen to this article
Reader Favorites
Your Practice / Business  |  DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE
Branding: Is It Necessary for Your Chiropractic Practice?
Branding: Is It Necessary for Your Chiropractic Practice?

Branding is crucial for attracting new patients as a chiropractor because it establishes a strong and memorable identity that builds trust and resonates with potential patients. According to a study by Nielsen, 59% of consumers prefer to buy products and services from familiar brands they trust.

Carolyn KreuzKamp, BS, MBA
Chronic / Acute Conditions
An Unrecognized Cause of Toe Pain
An Unrecognized Cause of Toe Pain
Flexor Hallucis Longus Entrapment: Diagnosis, Correction

While excessive pronation is almost always blamed for the development of functional hallux limitus, a frequently overlooked cause of this condition occurs when the flexor hallucis longus tendon gets trapped in the retrotalar pulley located behind the medial malleolus. This condition is particularly common in classical ballet dancers, gymnasts, figure skaters, and soccer players.

Thomas Michaud, DC
Listen to this article
Headaches & Migraines
Theater Headaches: A Surprising Cause
Theater Headaches: A Surprising Cause

As you know, chiropractic physicians are trained to evaluate and manage patients with cervicogenic headaches. Yet we may become overconfident with our diagnosis and misdiagnose the condition if we are not inquisitive during our initial patient interview. This putative case report should be most interesting to our chiropractic specialists, especially those who have earned a DABCI.

James Lehman, DC, DIANM
Listen to this article
Your Practice / Business
Patient Safety: Facing the Facts
Patient Safety: Facing the Facts

Clinical errors are a significant challenge, and nearly every person will experience a diagnostic error in their lifetime. As health care providers, we take an oath to “first do no harm” to our patients. And since it is never our intention to do harm to our patients, it is time the health care industry in general faced the facts of how our actions or inactions are putting our patients in harm’s way.

Scott Munsterman, DC, FICC, CPCO
Healthcare / Public Health  |  DIGITAL EXCLUSIVE
Stroke Timing and Vertebral Artery Dissection: What the Window Suggests
Stroke Timing and Vertebral Artery Dissection: What the Window Suggests
Chronology: An Important Factor Dispelling a Causal Relationship With Cervical Manipulation

For an unsuspecting consumer, medical doctor or attorney, the sequence may appear obvious: “I had my neck adjusted and then had a stroke.” A physician encountering the case after the fact may see the same temporal relationship. And in a legal proceeding, the fact that treatment preceded the stroke can become a particularly powerful narrative. But a chronological reconstruction can tell a very different story.

John T. Salvucci, Esq.