Chiropractic: Safe for Everyone

We care for a large number of people in our Dayton clinic, and Dr. T.J. Poelking has helped many people eliminate a variety of health challenges. Even so, one worry that seems to prevent some folks from pursuing care is whether or not chiropractic is safe. Fortunately, according to three different studies (out of countless on the topic), the answer to this question 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 men and women. Each test subject was affected by spinal pain, and half of the people received real chiropractic care while the remaining patients were given two sham chiropractic treatment sessions. Information was collected after each real or fake adjustment to identify if any unfavorable side effects were caused by the genuine chiropractic treatments.

The doctors found that no participants documented any significant unfavorable side effects whatsoever after getting one or two sessions of chiropractic care. Some participants did report that they got a headache (9 percent) or muscle stiffness (37 percent) after treatment, but the results were not serious.

Large US Survey Reports that Chiropractic Adjustments are Safe

A second research study(2), also released in the distinguished journal, Spine, was conducted in an effort to determine the safety of chiropractic care. The test group was much larger -- 20,000 people. Each participant received chiropractic adjustments of the cervical spine, with over 50,000 total adjustments for all study participants.

Again, the investigators found no serious negative side effects. The authors determined the risk of total side effects to be about six 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, side 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 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 Kids

The third study(3) is different from the first two pieces of research, as it concentrates on the safety of chiropractic care for kids. In this article, researchers analyzed 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 children, chiropractors responding to the survey documented only three cases where there were adverse 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 these three studies (and many more!), chiropractic care has been found to be safe and effective for everyone. To find out what chiropractic can do for you, call our Dayton office and make an appointment today at (937) 299-2900.

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.