Studies Confirm that Chiropractic is Safe

We see a large number of patients in our Depew office, and Dr. Palmer has helped countless people overcome a variety of health issues. In spite of this, the primary issue that seems to prevent a lot of people from getting treatment is whether or not chiropractic care is safe. Luckily, according to three separate studies (out of countless on the topic), the answer to this concern is a clear: "Yes! Chiropractic is safe!"

Chiropractic is Safe, According to Australian Study

The first study(1) was published in Spine and included 183 adults. Each test subject was affected by spinal pain, and half of the individuals received real chiropractic care whereas the other half were given two sham chiropractic treatments. Information was collected after each real or fake adjustment to determine if any unfavorable reactions occurred as a result of the real chiropractic treatments.

The authors found that no participants reported any serious adverse side effects in any way after getting one or two sessions of chiropractic. Some people did report that they got a headache (just 9% of people) or muscle stiffness (about 1 out of 3) after treatment, but the results were not of a serious nature.

Nationwide Survey Confirms that Chiropractic Adjustments are Safe

The next study(2), also released in the prestigious publication, Spine, was conducted in an effort to determine the safety of chiropractic. The test group was much larger -- 20,000 individuals. Each participant received chiropractic adjustments of the cervical spine, with over 50,000 total adjustments for all patients.

Once again, the researchers found no serious adverse side effects. The experts computed the risk of total side effects to be about 6 out of every 10,000 consultations or every 100,000 treatment sessions. Plus, just as with the first study, some people did report non-serious, milder, unwanted effects such as dizziness (about 1.6%) or a headache (4 out of every 100), and this prompted 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 Care Is Safe for Your Children

This third research paper(3) is different from the first two reports, as it concentrates on the safety of chiropractic care for children. In this case, the 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 young ones, chiropractors responding to the survey reported only three cases where there were adverse side effects. When parents were surveyed, they indicated only two adverse side effects out of 1,735 visits. Additionally, 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 deemed safe and effective for everyone. To discover what chiropractic can do for you, call our Depew clinic and schedule an appointment today at (716) 668-2225.

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.