We see a number of people with back pain in our Tenino office, and Mr. Kenney has been able to provide many of them get relief with chiropractic care. At the same time, dealing with back pain doesn't necessarily mean having to decide between chiropractic care and medical treatment, as many people utilize both types of care with great results.
Study Confirms Chiropractic and Medical Treatment Work Well with One Another
In a study published by the academic journal Spine investigators1 looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who reported both acute discomfort and limited function due to back-related issues. Some of the test subjects received treatment via standard medical care, while the remainder were given chiropractic adjustments as well as standard medical care, as researchers wanted to see which group fared better.
The authors determined that the group that got standard medical care combined with chiropractic scored "significantly better" than the group that got medical care alone; 73 percent reported positive benefits compared to just 17 percent of the medical treatment only group who reported the same amount of improvement. This was true regarding both pain and level of function at two and four weeks.
Thus, integrating these two forms of care can greatly benefit you--the patient--offering advantages when compared to medical care alone. However, while chiropractic and medical approaches can work alongside each other, chiropractic offers some distinct strengths over medical treatment.
Where Chiropractic Care Pulls Ahead
Although it may seem as if each method plays a 50/50 role, there is one significant benefit that chiropractic has over medical care and that is in patient satisfaction. In fact, one bit of research from UCLA2 that was printed in the American Journal of Public Health reports that, on average, chiropractic patients are generally more satisfied with their recovery than patients undergoing medical care.
According to the researchers, the main aspects that patients preferred over medical treatment were "self-care advice and explanation of treatment." This isn't unexpected, as chiropractors commonly spend much more time consulting with their patients as to how they can improve their health on their own, as well as discussing more carefully what to expect from chiropractic.
Chiropractic Care Offers a Non-Invasive Approach
Without a doubt, the methods associated with chiropractic are very different than those offered with medical care, but a great deal of the difference is the fact that chiropractic is a natural approach to health and wellness. Rather than focusing on only relieving the symptoms, chiropractic care involves finding the root cause of your pain, which often means greater improvement as you are addressing the problem at its source.
Additionally, while medication is sometimes helpful for managing certain conditions, many health issues respond well to natural forms of treatment like chiropractic. This means fewer negative side effects from medications and more permanent results.
You don't have to endure back pain or other health problems. Give our Tenino clinic a call today at (360) 866-3731. We'll do our best to help you get and continue to be free from back pain.
References
- Goertz CM, Long CR, Hondras MA, Petri R, Delgado R, Lawrence DJ, Owens EF, Meeker WC. Adding chiropractic manipulative therapy to standard medical care for patients with acute low back pain: results of a pragmatic randomized comparative effectiveness study. Spine 2013;38(8):627-634.
- Hertzman-Miller RP1, Morgenstern H, Hurwitz EL, Yu F, Adams AH, Harber P, Kominski GF. Comparing the satisfaction of low back pain patients randomized to receive medical or chiropractic care: results from the UCLA low-back pain study. American Journal of Public Health 2002;92(10):1628-1633.