Initial findings from the Gallup-Palmer College of Chiropractic Annual Study of Americans provide insight into U.S. adults' experiences with pain and their perceptions of and opinions regarding pharmaceutical vs. conservative pain management, particularly opioids.
"Americans Prefer Drug-Free Pain Management Over Opioids," a Gallup brief based on specific findings from the 2017 survey, is now available; the complete Gallup-Palmer report, analyzing data gathered February-March 2017, will be released in October. Here's a sampling of the findings outlined in the brief:
Pain is an ongoing issue for Americans: "About one in four adults in the U.S. (27%) have seen a healthcare professional for significant neck or back pain in the last 12 months. More than half of those adults (54%) have had an ongoing problem with neck or back pain for five years or more."
Nearly eight in 10 (78 percent) of Americans "prefer to try other ways to address their physical pain before they take pain medication prescribed by a doctor." However, pain medications are still widely used: "Among those who have had ongoing neck or back pain for less than 12 months, seven in 10 have taken a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID), such as Advil®, aspirin or Aleve®, to manage the pain, and 45% have taken acetaminophen, such as Tylenol®. One in four of these new neck or back pain sufferers say they took an opioid for pain management."
For managing back / neck pain, chiropractic is perceived as "very effective" by 29 percent of Americans – higher than prescription pain medication (22 percent), back surgery (15 percent) and self-care (9 percent). Only physical therapy (41 percent "very effective") scored higher.
Americans also perceive chiropractic as safer than prescription and OTC medication and back surgery for neck / back pain: 33 percent "very safe," vs. 23 percent for OTC medication, 12 percent for prescription meds and 6 percent for surgery. (By comparison, 68 percent perceive PT as "very safe.")
The proposed merger of the National Board of Chiropractic Examiners and Federation of Chiropractic Licensing Boards was approved by NBCE delegates and FCLB members at their respective annual meetings, held jointly in Atlanta, Ga., this year. Per the new bylaws, the new entity takes the NBCE name, with FCLB continuing as a department within NBCE. The federation will continue to enjoy Board of Directors representation on what will be a single, expanded board.
Before introducing subscapularis syndrome as an upper extremity analog, it is essential to revisit piriformis syndrome as a well-established example of myogenic pseudo-radiculopathy. Piriformis syndrome has long served as a clinical exception to disc-centric models of lower extremity pain and provides an important framework for understanding how deep muscular dysfunction can mimic radiculopathy in the absence of nerve root compression.
Pain has become the dominant language of musculoskeletal healthcare. Numeric pain-rating scales and symptom reports are routinely used as primary indicators of clinical success. But while pain reduction is meaningful, it is an incomplete and often misleading representation of recovery. This has real consequences for patient adherence, long-term outcomes, and how conservative care is perceived within the broader healthcare system.
