Considering the extensive media coverage of alternative health care, and chiropractic in particular, it is evident that the public's curiosity about these two areas is continuing to grow. Now even more light will be shed on the effectiveness of alternative therapies and chiropractic. Researcher Dr. David M. Eisenberg, author of the watershed study on alternative therapies in the New England Journal of Medicine,1 has received funding from the Foundation for Chiropractic Education and Research (FCER) in the amount of $150,000 for a pilot study on chiropractic, acupuncture, and massage therapy compared to traditional medical care.
Dr. Eisenberg, who is affiliated with the Harvard Medical School/Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, will enroll 60 low back pain patients into the pilot trial: 20 randomized into the traditional medical care group; and 40 into an "expanded benefits group (EB)." The EB group will be given a choice of care for low back pain: medical, chiropractic, acupuncture, or massage therapy.
Patients randomized into the EB group will receive up to 10 treatments (two per week) over five weeks. The treatments will be available within 48 hours after randomization and provided by licensed chiropractors, acupuncturists, and massage therapists practicing in the study subjects' geographic vicinity. Symptom relief, functional status, restricted activity days, use of health care, and patient/provider satisfaction will be assessed at 2, 5, and 12 weeks after initiation of treatment.
The results of this study will provide patients, health care providers, managed care systems, and insurers with vital information on patients' preferences, willingness to comply with commonly used treatments for low back pain, and the costs associated with each treatment.
The project's funding was made possible by both a $100,000 grant to FCER by the National Chiropractic Mutual Insurance Company and $50,000 from Alignis, a chiropractic PPO.
Reference
1. Eisenberg DM et al. Unconventional medicine in the United States. N Engl J Med 1993;328:246-283.
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