Studies Confirm that Chiropractic is Safe

We tend to a large number of patients in our Estero, Bonita Springs office, and Dr. Green has helped many people eliminate a wide array of health problems. Even so, a frequent worry that seems to prevent a lot of men and women from seeking treatment is whether or not chiropractic care is safe. Luckily, according to three different studies (out of countless on the issue), the answer to this question is a clear: "Yes! Chiropractic is safe!"

Australian Study: Chiropractic is Safe

The first study(1) was published in Spine and included 183 women and men between the ages of 20 and 85. Each participant reported suffering from some kind of back pain, and half of the patients received real chiropractic care while the remaining patients were given two fake chiropractic treatments. Information was gathered after each real or fake adjustment to identify whether or not any unpleasant reactions were caused by the actual chiropractic treatments.

The doctors reported that no participants reported any serious adverse side effects in any way after receiving one or two sessions of chiropractic care. Some individuals did report that they got a headache (9% of patients) or muscle stiffness (37 percent) post-treatment, but the effects were not of a serious nature.

Nationwide Survey Reports that Chiropractic Adjustments are Safe

The second article(2), also published in the influential medical journal, Spine, was done in an attempt to determine the safety of chiropractic. The test group was much larger -- 20,000 individuals. Each participant received chiropractic adjustments of the neck, with over 50,000 total adjustments for all study participants.

Once again, the experts discovered no serious negative side effects. The experts determined the risk of total adverse reactions to be approximately 6 out of every 10,000 consultations or every 100,000 treatment sessions. Plus, just as with the first study, some volunteers did report non-serious, milder, side effects such as dizziness (less than 2%) or a headache (4 out of every 100), and this caused the researchers to conclude that "the risk of a serious adverse event, immediately or up to 7 days after treatment, was low to very low."

Chiropractic Care Is Safe for Children

The third research paper(3) is different from the previous two reports, as it concentrates on the safety of chiropractic care for children. In this case, the authors analyzed results reported by both chiropractors and parents involving 816 children who participated in 7,173 chiropractic treatment sessions.

Out of 5,438 chiropractic appointments made for the young ones, chiropractors responding to the survey reported only three cases where there were negative side effects. When parents were surveyed, they indicated only two adverse side effects out of 1,735 visits. Furthermore, both chiropractors and parents reported "a high rate of improvement with respect to the children's presenting complaints."

Based on these three studies (and many more!), chiropractic has been deemed safe and effective for everyone. To find out what chiropractic can do for you, call our Estero, Bonita Springs office and schedule an appointment today at (239) 495-1166.

References

1. Walker BF, Hebert JJ, Stomski NJ, Clarke BR, Bowden RS, Losco B, French SD. Outcomes of usual chiropractic. The OUCH randomized controlled trial of adverse events. Spine 2013;38(20):1723-9.
2. Thiel HW1, Bolton JE, Docherty S, Portlock JC. Safety of chiropractic manipulation of the cervical spine: a prospective national survey. Spine 2007;32(21):2375-8.
3. Alcantara J, Ohm J, Kunz D. The safety and effectiveness of pediatric chiropractic: a survey of chiropractors and parents in a practice-based research network. Explore NY 2009;5(5): 290-5.