We tend to a large number of patients in our Tenino office, and Mr. Kenney has helped many people manage a variety of health issues. However, a frequent worry that seems to prevent some men and women from getting care is whether or not chiropractic care is safe. Fortunately, according to three separate studies (out of countless on the subject), the answer to this concern is a resounding: "Yes! Chiropractic is safe!"
Chiropractic is Safe, According to Australian Study
The first study(1) was published in Spine and included 183 men and women. Each individual reported affected by some kind of back pain, and half of the patients received real chiropractic care whereas the remaining patients received two fake chiropractic adjustments. Information was gathered after each real or fake adjustment to discover if any unfavorable reactions occurred as a result of the actual chiropractic treatments.
The doctors reported that nobody documented any serious undesirable adverse reactions in any way after receiving one or two sessions of chiropractic care. Some participants did state that they got a headache (just 9% of people) or muscle stiffness (37%) after treatment, but the results were not serious.
Large US Survey Finds that Chiropractic is Safe
The next research study(2), also released in the prestigious publication, Spine, was performed in an effort to ascertain the safety of chiropractic. The study group was much larger as it involved just under 20,000 patients. Each participant received chiropractic adjustments of the neck, with over 50,000 total adjustments for all study participants.
Again, the investigators found no serious negative side effects. The experts computed the risk of total adverse reactions to be about six out of every 10,000 consultations or every 100,000 treatment sessions. And, 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 authors to determine that "the risk of a serious adverse event, immediately or up to 7 days after treatment, was low to very low."
Chiropractic Adjustments are Safe for Your Children
This third research paper(3) is different from the previous two pieces of research, as it concentrates on the safety of chiropractic care for children. In this case, the researchers investigated data reported by both chiropractors and parents involving 816 children who participated in 7,173 chiropractic adjustments.
Out of 5,438 chiropractic appointments made for the young children, chiropractors answering the survey documented only three cases where there were adverse 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 studies like these, chiropractic has been found to be safe and effective for everyone. To find out what chiropractic care can do for you, call our Tenino office and make an appointment today at (360) 866-3731.
References
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.