Studies Confirm that Chiropractic Treatment Is Safe

We care for a large number of people in our North County St. Louis, MO office, and Dr. Holland has helped many people eliminate a variety of health problems. However, a frequent issue that seems to prevent some people from seeking care is whether or not chiropractic care is safe. Luckily, according to three different studies (out of countless on the subject), the answer to this concern is a clear: "Yes! Chiropractic is safe!"

Australian Study: Chiropractic is Safe

The first research paper(1) was published in Spine and included 183 men and women between the ages of 20 and 85. Each person was suffering from spinal pain, and half of the patients received real chiropractic adjustments whereas the other half received two fake chiropractic treatment sessions. Information was gathered after each real or fake adjustment to see whether or not any undesirable side effects occurred as a result of the genuine chiropractic adjustments.

Researchers reported that none of the patients documented any significant adverse adverse reactions whatsoever after getting one or two sessions of chiropractic care. Some participants did report that they experienced a headache (just 9% of people) or muscle stiffness (37%) after treatment, but the effects were not of a serious nature.

National Survey Finds that Chiropractic Adjustments are Safe

The next research study(2), also released in the influential medical journal, Spine, was conducted in an effort to ascertain the safety of chiropractic care. 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 patients.

Once again, the researchers found no serious adverse side effects. The experts calculated the risk of total negative effects 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 (16 out of every 1,000 treatment consultations and 15 out of every 1,000 treatment sessions) or a headache (4%), and this caused the authors to conclude that "the risk of a serious adverse event, immediately or up to 7 days after treatment, was low to very low."

Chiropractic Is Safe for Children

This third study(3) is unique from the first two pieces of research, as it concentrates on the safety of chiropractic care for children. In this case, researchers investigated 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 children, chiropractors answering the survey documented only three cases where there were adverse reactions. 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 care has been judged safe and effective for everyone. To discover what chiropractic treatment can do for you, call our North County St. Louis, MO office and make an appointment today at (314) 867-8888.

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.