While chiropractic care is receiving high levels of exposure these days, most pain patients who consult with a health provider still do so with their primary-care MD. And of course, that means in most cases, they're receiving standard medical care, not chiropractic.
Big mistake, suggests findings from the largest randomized clinical trial in chiropractic research in the U.S. to date. Published in the inaugural issue of the American Medical Association's JAMA Network Open, the study by Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research (PCCR) investigators Dr. Christine Goertz, et al., in conjunction with the RAND Corporation and the Samueli Institute, evaluated strategies for the management of LBP in active-duty military personnel at two large military medical centers and a smaller military training site hospital.
U.S. active-duty service members with LBP from a musculoskeletal source s and were randomly allocated to receive either "usual medical care" or usual medical care plus chiropractic care for six weeks. UMC included self-care, meds, physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic. Chiropractic care included spinal manipulation to the low back and adjacent areas, and rehabilitative exercise, cryotherapy, superficial heat and other manual therapies.
Chiropractic added to UMC resulted in moderate short-term improvements in patients' pain intensity and disability vs. patients receiving UMC alone. Specifically:
“This patient-centered, multi-site, pragmatic clinical trial provides the strongest evidence to-date that chiropractic care is safe, effective and can be integrated into multidisciplinary health-care settings,” said Dr. Goertz, lead author of the study. “These findings are critical as the United States health-care system looks for ways to implement existing national guidelines from groups such as the American College of Physicians and the Joint Commission that recommend non-drug treatments, such as spinal manipulative therapy, as the first line of treatment for low-back pain."
Published in JAMA's open-access journal, this study is available by clicking here.
When sports chiropractors first appeared at the Olympic Games in the 1980s, it was alongside individual athletes who had experienced the benefits of chiropractic care in their training and recovery processes at home. Fast forward to Paris 2024, where chiropractic care was available in the polyclinic for all athletes, and the attitude has now evolved to recognize that “every athlete deserves access to sports chiropractic."
It is estimated that 61% of patients with CTS avoid taking surgical options due to postoperative complications and costly surgical procedures. Chiropractic care offers a comprehensive and effective treatment for carpal tunnel syndrome, addressing the condition from multiple angles. Recent studies also have unveiled a game-changing adjunct to chiropractic treatments for CTS: nerve flossing.
Some doctors thrive in a personality-based clinic and have a loyal following no matter what services or equipment they offer, but for most chiropractic offices who are trying to grow and expand, new equipment purchases help us stay relevant and continue to service our client base in the best, most up-to-date manner possible. So, regarding equipment purchasing: should you lease, get a bank loan, or pay cash?
