Chiropractic Proven Safe

We tend to a large number of people in our Lincoln office, and Dr. Jerrad Swanson DC, FMT, DN1 has helped countless people manage a wide array of health challenges. Even so, one issue that seems to stop a lot of folks from seeking care is whether or not chiropractic is safe. Fortunately, according to three separate studies (out of quite a few on the subject), 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 women and men. Each test subject was affected by some kind of back pain, and half of the patients received real chiropractic adjustments while the other half received two fake chiropractic treatment sessions. Information was collected after each real or fake adjustment to determine whether or not any unfavorable negative effects were caused by the real chiropractic treatments.

Researchers found that no participants documented any serious adverse adverse reactions at all after receiving one or two sessions of chiropractic care. Some participants did report that they experienced a headache (just 9% of people) or muscle stiffness (37 percent) post-treatment, but the results were not of a serious nature.

Large US Survey Reports that Chiropractic Adjustments are Safe

The second study(2), also released in the influential medical journal, Spine, was conducted in an attempt to ascertain the safety of chiropractic care. The study group was much larger as it involved just under 20,000 patients. Each participant received chiropractic adjustments of the neck, with over 50,000 total adjustments for all study participants.

Once again, the investigators found no serious adverse side effects. The authors computed the risk of total adverse reactions to be about six 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 (about 1.6%) or a headache (4%), 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 Adjustments are Safe for Your 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 article, the authors 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 reported 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. 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 care has been found to be safe and effective for everyone. To discover what chiropractic can do for you, call our Lincoln office and schedule an appointment today at (402) 484-5177.

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.