We see a number of patients with back pain in our Saint Paul, MN practice, and Robert C Slater, DC has been able to provide a lot of them get relief with chiropractic care. However, dealing with back pain doesn't necessarily mean having to decide between chiropractic care and medical therapy, as many individuals use both types of care with great success.
Research Confirms Chiropractic and Medical Treatment Work Together
In a report published by the academic journal Spine researchers looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who were suffering from both acute pain and restricted function due to back-related issues. Some of the patients engaged in treatment via standard medical therapy, while the remainder were given chiropractic adjustments together with regular medical care, as the authors wanted to determine which group fared better.
The authors determined that the group that received standard medical care in combination with chiropractic scored "significantly better" than the patients who received medical care alone; 73% reported positive benefits in comparison to just 17% of the medical treatment only group who indicated the same amount of improvement. This was true regarding both pain and level of function at two and four weeks.
Accordingly, combining these two forms of care can greatly benefit you--the patient--offering benefits when compared to medical care alone. However, while chiropractic care and medical approaches can work together, chiropractic offers some distinct advantages over medical therapy.
Where Chiropractic Pulls Ahead
Although it may seem as if each method plays a 50/50 role, there is one significant benefit that chiropractic has over medical treatment and that is in patient satisfaction. In fact, one bit of research from UCLA2 that was printed in the American Journal of Public Health reports that, on average, chiropractic patients are generally more satisfied with their recovery than patients undergoing medical treatment.
According to the researchers, the main factors that patients liked over medical treatment were "self-care advice and explanation of treatment." This isn't surprising, as chiropractors commonly spend much more time advising their patients as to how they can improve their health on their own, as well as discussing more thoroughly what to expect from chiropractic care.
Chiropractic Care Is a Natural Approach to Wellness
Without a doubt, the strategies associated with chiropractic are quite different than those provided with medical therapy, but a great deal of the difference is the fact that chiropractic is a holistic approach to health and well-being. Instead of focusing on simply relieving the symptoms, chiropractic involves tracking down the root cause of your pain, which often translates to greater improvement as you are addressing the problem at its source.
Additionally, while medication is sometimes helpful for managing certain conditions, many health issues respond well to natural forms of treatment such as chiropractic. This means fewer negative responses to drugs and longer-lasting results.
You don't have to struggle with back pain or other health issues. Give our Saint Paul, MN office a call today at (651) 699-3366. We'll work to help you get and remain free from back pain.
References
- Goertz CM, Long CR, Hondras MA, Petri R, Delgado R, Lawrence DJ, Owens EF, Meeker WC. Adding chiropractic manipulative therapy to standard medical care for patients with acute low back pain: results of a pragmatic randomized comparative effectiveness study. Spine 2013;38(8):627-634.
- Hertzman-Miller RP1, Morgenstern H, Hurwitz EL, Yu F, Adams AH, Harber P, Kominski GF. Comparing the satisfaction of low back pain patients randomized to receive medical or chiropractic care: results from the UCLA low-back pain study. American Journal of Public Health 2002;92(10):1628-1633.
