How Safe is Chiropractic?

We see a large number of people in our Memphis office, and Dynamic Chiropractic has helped countless people manage a range of health problems. However, a frequent issue that seems to stop some men and women from seeking treatment is whether or not chiropractic adjustments are safe. Well, 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 included 183 men and women between the ages of 20 and 85. Each person reported suffering from spinal pain, and half of the patients received real chiropractic adjustments while the other half were given two sham chiropractic adjustments. Information was gathered after each real or fake adjustment to see if any undesirable reactions were caused by the genuine chiropractic adjustments.

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

Large US Survey Confirms that Chiropractic Care is Safe

The next study(2), also published in the distinguished journal, Spine, was performed in an attempt to ascertain the safety of chiropractic care. The test group was much larger -- 20,000 individuals. Each participant received chiropractic adjustments of the cervical spine, with over 50,000 total adjustments for all patients.

Once again, the researchers discovered no serious adverse side effects. The authors determined the risk of total negative effects to be approximately 6 out of every 10,000 consultations or every 100,000 treatment sessions. Plus, just as with the first study, some volunteers 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%), 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 Care Is Safe for Your Children

The third research paper(3) is unique from the first two pieces of research, as it concentrates on the safety of chiropractic care for children. In this article, researchers investigated data reported by both chiropractors and parents involving 816 children who participated in 7,173 chiropractic treatment sessions.

Out of 5,438 chiropractic visits made for the kids, chiropractors responding to the survey documented 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. Furthermore, 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 learn what chiropractic can do for you, call our Memphis office and make an appointment today at (901) 757-8311.

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.