How Safe is Chiropractic?

How Safe is Chiropractic?

We tend to a large number of patients in our Depew office, and Dr. Palmer has helped countless people overcome a variety of health problems. Even so, one issue that seems to prevent many folks from pursuing care is whether or not chiropractic adjustments are safe. Fortunately, according to three separate studies (out of many on the issue), the answer to this concern is a resounding: "Yes! Chiropractic is safe!"

Chiropractic is Safe, According to Australian Study

The first research paper(1) was published in Spine and involved 183 adults between the ages of 20 and 85. Each individual reported affected by some kind of back pain, and half of the people received actual chiropractic care visits while the remaining patients were given two sham chiropractic treatments. Data was obtained after each real or fake adjustment to identify whether or not any undesirable side effects were caused by the actual chiropractic adjustments.

The authors found that none of the patients reported any serious adverse adverse reactions whatsoever after receiving one or two sessions of chiropractic. Some participants did report that they experienced a headache (9% of patients) or muscle stiffness (about 1 out of 3) post-treatment, but the effects were not serious.

National Survey Finds that Chiropractic Adjustments are Safe

The second research study(2), also published in the important journal, Spine, was done in an attempt to ascertain the safety of chiropractic. The study group was much larger -- 20,000 people. Each participant received chiropractic adjustments of the neck, with over 50,000 total adjustments for all patients.

Once again, the investigators found no serious adverse side effects. The authors computed the risk of total negative effects to be about 6 out of every 10,000 consultations or every 100,000 treatment sessions. And, just as with the previous study, some individuals did report non-serious, milder, unwanted effects such as dizziness (less than 2%) 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

The third research paper(3) is unique from the first two reports, as it concentrates on the safety of chiropractic care for kids. In this case, the researchers analyzed results reported by both chiropractors and parents involving 816 children who participated in 7,173 chiropractic adjustments.

Out of 5,438 chiropractic visits made for the young children, chiropractors responding to the survey documented only three cases where there were negative side effects. 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 studies like these, chiropractic care has been found to be safe and effective for everyone. To learn what chiropractic can do for you, call our Depew office 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.