Bronfort et al. (2012), Annals of Internal Medicine
In a study funded by NIH’s National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine to test the effectiveness of different approaches for treating mechanical neck pain, 272 participants were divided into three groups that received either spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) from a doctor of chiropractic (DC), pain medication (over-the-counter pain relievers, narcotics and muscle relaxants) or exercise recommendations. After 12 weeks, about 57 percent of those who met with DCs and 48 percent who exercised reported at least a 75 percent reduction in pain, compared to 33 percent of the people in the medication group. After one year, approximately 53 percent of the drug-free groups continued to report at least a 75 percent reduction in pain; compared to just 38 percent pain reduction among those who took medication. (more…)
McCrory, Penzlen, Hasselblad, Gray (2001), Duke Evidence Report
“Cervical spine manipulation was associated with significant improvement in headache outcomes in trials involving patients with neck pain and/or neck dysfunction and headache.” (more…)
Schneider et al (2015), Spine
“Manual-thrust manipulation provides greater short-term reductions in self-reported disability and pain compared with usual medical care. 94% of the manual-thrust manipulation group achieved greater than 30% reduction in pain compared with 69% of usual medical care.” (more…)
Noninvasive Treatments for Acute, Subacute, and Chronic Low Back Pain: A Clinical Practice Guideline From the American College of Physicians (2017)
“Given that most patients with acute or subacute low back pain improve over time regardless of treatment, clinicians and patients should select nonpharmacologic treatment with superficial heat (moderate-quality evidence), massage, acupuncture, or spinal manipulation (low-quality evidence). If pharmacologic treatment is desired, clinicians and patients should select nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or skeletal muscle relaxants (moderate-quality evidence).” (more…)
The United States is in the midst of the worst addiction epidemic in history and New Hampshire has become its poster child. The statistics are startling with nearly 64,000 lives lost to overdoses in 2016, a greater loss of life than the entire Vietnam War. As attention is focused on finding a solution to this crisis, the finger of blame has been pointed firmly in the direction of the pharmaceutical industry and a medical community encouraged for over a decade to generously prescribe some of the most addictive substances known to man. The CDC estimates that up to 80% of heroin addicts developed their addiction through the legitimate use of opioid medications.
As scientists and policymakers around the country have struggled to come up with strategies for this societal catastrophe, new research out of Dartmouth College lends support to treatment options endorsed by nearly every major health agency in the country. Upon reconsideration of the treatment of pain, the CDC, Joint Commission, FDA, Institute of Medicine, American College of Physicians and the Canadian government have all adopted new standards calling for non-pharmacologic methods as a “first-line” approach. Last month, The Lancet, one of the world’s most prestigious medical journals, called for non-drug therapies first in its comprehensive study on lower back pain. (more…)
Compass examined the relationship between chiropractic and physical therapy services and several outcome measures related to opioid use. Again, consistent with past studies,2 Compass found that any use of and the amount of use of chiropractic care was associated with lower use of opioids. compass study highlighted
Schneider et al (2015), Spine
The United States is in the midst of the worst addiction epidemic in history and New Hampshire has become its poster child. The statistics are startling with nearly 64,000 lives lost to overdoses in 2016, a greater loss of life than the entire Vietnam War. As attention is focused on finding a solution to this crisis, the finger of blame has been pointed firmly in the direction of the pharmaceutical industry and a medical community encouraged for over a decade to generously prescribe some of the most addictive substances known to man. The CDC estimates that up to 80% of heroin addicts developed their addiction through the legitimate use of opioid medications.