Studies Confirm that Chiropractic Therapy Is Safe

We care for a large number of people in our Nashville clinic, and Sweeney Chiropractic has helped countless people manage a range of health challenges. However, a frequent issue that seems to prevent a lot of folks from pursuing care is whether or not chiropractic adjustments are safe. Well, according to three separate studies (out of many on the topic), the answer to this question is a clear: "Yes! Chiropractic is safe!"

Chiropractic is Safe, According to Australian Study

The first article(1) was published in Spine and involved 183 adults between the ages of 20 and 85. Each person was suffering from spine-related pain, and half of the individuals received actual chiropractic care visits while the remaining patients received two sham chiropractic treatments. Information was obtained after each real or fake adjustment to identify whether or not any unfavorable side effects occurred as a result of the genuine chiropractic adjustments.

The doctors reported that nobody reported any serious unfavorable adverse reactions at all after getting one or two sessions of chiropractic care. Some participants did report that they experienced a headache (9% of patients) or muscle stiffness (about 1 out of 3) post-treatment, but the results were not serious.

National Survey Finds that Chiropractic Care is Safe

The next study(2), also released in the important publication, Spine, was done in an effort to determine the safety of chiropractic care. The study group was much larger as it involved just under 20,000 individuals. Each participant received chiropractic adjustments of the neck, with over 50,000 total adjustments for all patients.

Once again, the researchers found no serious negative side effects. The authors determined 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 first study, some individuals 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%), 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 Is Safe for Children

This third research paper(3) is unique from the previous two reports, as it concentrates on the safety of chiropractic care for kids. In this case, the authors investigated data 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 kids, chiropractors responding to the survey documented only three cases where there were adverse effects. When parents were questioned, 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 has been judged safe and effective for everyone. To discover what chiropractic therapy can do for you, call our Nashville clinic and schedule an appointment today at (615) 331-7040.

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.