Fighting The Prejudice Against Chiropractic Care

Since the establishment of chiropractic care in 1895 till the present date, chiropractors like Dr. Aaron Richardet have used this effective treatment alternative to relieve patients from insufferable pain of the joints, back, muscles etc. Chiropractics has been through various ups and downs during recent times. The chunk of the credit goes to negative press received by it due to negligent or fake data received over time. One of the other factor involves propaganda concerning various drug companies who might be losing business due to this drug-free alternative form of medicine.

Every 2 out of 3 people would experience lower back pain at some point in their life. In such cases, many treatments are suggested by the physicians including various treatments and therapies depending upon the condition of the patient. One of the treatments that hadn’t made the list until recently was chiropractic care. However, “it is time to reconsider this bias”, as Dr. Aaron E. Carroll, an American pediatrician stated for an article in the New York Times.

He further added, “Spinal manipulation — along with other less traditional therapies like heat, meditation and acupuncture — seems to be as effective as many other more medical therapies we prescribe, and as safe, if not safer.” Most of the conditions involving back pain that a person experiences heals itself overtime. Hence, it is important to treat symptoms like inflammation and insufferable pain to provide relief to the one suffering from it. This can be done by an expert chiropractor who possesses the required expertise to know the pressure points to relieve the pain.

Chiropractics is a non-pharmacological procedure, which means that there is no involvement of any kind of drugs. It is also non-invasive as it does not involve any surgical procedures to provide the required relief to the patients. Physicians traditionally looked down on chiropractics since it involves applying direct pressure to the affected bone or joint. However, recent studies made by various research universities may sway the tide in chiropractic care’s favor. Patients with back pain have been coming forward in favor of chiropractic care since 2002. A survey conducted from 2002 through 2008 showed that 30% of the total patients suffering from lower back pain sought after chiropractic care rather than other techniques like massage, acupuncture, or homeopathy.

Studies have been carried out looking at the evidence of spinal manipulation therapy for some time, which still continues to this day. Initially, in 1982, a review of the available research showed that chiropractic care was not a reliable treatment for people suffering from lower back pain. However, later on, two reviews from a 2003 study showed that chiropractic care was able to, for most part, provide adequate treatment for people suffering from back pain.

Later on, after almost a decade, a review called the Cochrane review was conducted which studied 12 other trials that have been conducted after the previous review. It proved to be damning for chiropractics and concluded that the treatment was no better than the sham procedure. But since then, new data has been coming in from authoritative studies. The Journal of American Medical Association recently published the new studies in 2011 as well as those performed before.

The proof from 15 random controlled trials, which had a participation of about 1700 patients, showed that the spinal manipulation therapy improved the pain of the people by 10 points on a 100-point scale. The evidence from another of these studies from 12 randomized controlled trials- which overlapped with some of the previous trials but not completely- showed from almost 1400 patients there was significant improvement in the function.

Recently, in February 2017, another excpert in Annals of Internal Medicine, another systematic review of the said evidence, confirmed the role of chiropractic care in assisting with lower back pains. Based on this review, the American College of Physicians released the new guidelines regarding the involvement of non-invasive methods to treat lower back pains.

In all the studies that were conducted, there were no harmful effects reported regarding the treatment. Some physicians are concerned over the cost incurred during a chiropractic treatment since most insurers don’t cover it. However, the fact remains that it would cost less to visit an expert chiropractor like Dr. Aaron Richardet than taking all the non-narcotic pain medications. Various studies has been conducted exploring the cost viability as well, and it has been found that the overall cost of regular chiropractor visits costs less than invasive surgeries or lengthy consumption of pain medications.

There is also the risk factor surrounding the surgical procedures that are done to relieve lower back pain. It can be anything from an infection or the harmful effects of some of the opioids that are used to treat painful symptoms. Dr. Aaron E. Carroll recounts, “Some physicians are uncomfortable that we don’t have a clear picture of how spinal manipulation actually works to reduce pain. It’s also possible that some chiropractors do it “better” than others, and we can’t tell. This concern should be tempered by the fact that we don’t have a great understanding of why many other therapies work either. Some of the more traditional things we recommend don’t even work consistently.”

Given the natural course of back pain, the most logical thing to do is let the body heal itself while dealing with symptoms with the most non-invasive method possible. Here’s where chiropractic therapy comes in and experts in the field like Dr. Aaron Richardet can help improve the condition through spinal manipulation therapy.

Misalignment of spine can occur to anyone at any point in life. It causes pain to the lower back as well as the neck and spine. Living in discomfort can be quite vexing. One does not need to put up with the discomfort that spinal pain brings. A person can book an appointment with an expert chiropractor in their area and get the proper treatment.