Research Shows Chiropractic Adjustments Effective at Preventing Sports Injuries

We see a many of sports injuries in our Kettering office, and Dr. Poelking is often able to assist these athletes. Stanford Childrens Hospital reports that over 3.5 million children aged 14 and younger are injured each year when playing sports. Add that to the close to 2 million adults hurt each year while taking part in sports-related activities, as reported by statistics compiled by the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services, and you can start to see the necessity of preventing these types of common injuries. One approach to possible achieve that goal, as stated in a study published in BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, is to engage in routine chiropractic treatments.

In Australian Rules football, hamstring and other leg traumas are common, frequently sidelining the players and affecting their team's odds of winning. One specific study was conducted using 59 semi-elite Australian Rules footballers to see if chiropractic adjustments could reduce these injuries and help keep them playing.

Research Supports Chiropractic Treatment Helps in Treating Sports Injuries

For this study in particular, every one of the participants received medical treatment. Additionally, half of them also were given chiropractic sessions at the rate of one session per week for the first six weeks, biweekly sessions for the following three months, and one session per month for the remaining three months of the study. The remaining half were given no chiropractic intervention whatsoever and were used as the control group to determine the benefits of chiropractic care.

Following 24 matches, scientists noticed a lessened number of lower limb muscle strains in the group that had been given chiropractic care. Moreover, that same group also missed fewer matches related to non-contact knee injuries. This lead the researchers to come to the conclusion that chiropractic ought to be made an addition to sports training programs to effectively reduce the amount of leg injuries.

Dr. Poelking Can Help Patients Find Relief From Sports Injuries & Help You Get Better Quicker

If you or your child are active in sports and you want to ensure greater time is dedicated on the field versus on the bench, call our Kettering office at (937) 299-2900 and schedule an appointment today. We will do our best to keep you in the game!

References

• Hoskins, W, & Pollard, H. (2010, April 8). The effect of a sports chiropractic manual therapy intervention on the prevention of back pain, hamstring and lower limb injuries in semi-elite Australian Rules footballers: a randomized controlled trial. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders, 11(64), doi:10.1186/1471-2474-11-64
• Misra, A. (2014, March 17). Common sports injuries: Incidence and average charges. Department of Health & Human Services.
• Stanford Children’s Hospital. (n.d.). Sports injury statistics.