Chiropractic Proven Safe

We tend to a large number of patients in our West New York clinic, and Dr. Marsh has helped many people overcome a variety of health issues. In spite of this, a common concern that seems to stop many women and men from getting care is whether or not chiropractic adjustments are safe. Luckily, according to three different studies (out of many on the issue), the answer to this concern is a clear: "Yes! Chiropractic is safe!"

Chiropractic & Osteopathic Treatments are Safe, According to Australian Study

The first research paper(1) was published in Spine and included 183 men and women between the ages of 20 and 85. Each participant reported suffering from some kind of back pain, and half of the people received real chiropractic adjustments while the remaining patients received two fake chiropractic treatment sessions. Information was gathered after each real or fake adjustment to discover whether or not any unfavorable reactions occurred as a result of the real chiropractic adjustments.

Researchers reported that no one documented any significant adverse side effects whatsoever after receiving one or two sessions of chiropractic. Some participants did state that they had a headache (9 percent) or muscle stiffness (about 1 out of 3) post-treatment, but the effects were not serious.

Nationwide Survey Confirms that Chiropractic & Osteopathic Treatments are Safe

The next research study(2), also published in the prestigious journal, Spine, was done in an attempt to determine the safety of chiropractic and osteopathic treatments. The test group was much larger as it involved just under 20,000 people. Each participant received chiropractic adjustments of the neck, with over 50,000 total adjustments for all study participants.

Once again, the researchers found no serious negative side effects. The experts determined 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 first study, some participants did report non-serious, milder, unwanted 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 out of every 100), and this caused the researchers 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 Children

This third study(3) is unique from the previous two pieces of research, as it focuses 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 answering 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. 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 and osteopathic treatments have been found to be safe and effective for everyone. To discover what chiropractic care and osteopathic treatments can do for you, call our West New York clinic and schedule an appointment today at (201) 869-0830.

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.