Chiropractic and Medical Care: An Effective Combination

We see quite a few back pain patients in our Land O' Lakes, FL office, and Dr. Michael Craven has been able to provide a lot of them find relief through various chiropractic techniques. However, recovering from back pain doesn't necessarily mean having to decide between chiropractic care and medical care, as many individuals use both types of care with great results.

Study Confirms Chiropractic and Medical Treatment Work Well with One Another

In a report published by the academic journal Spine investigators¹ looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who reported both acute soreness and limited function due to back symptoms. Some of the patients engaged in treatment via standard medical therapy, while the remainder received chiropractic adjustments as well as standard medical care, as the authors wanted to determine which group fared better.

Researchers observed that the patients who received standard medical care along with chiropractic care scored "significantly better" than the group that received medical care alone; 73 percent reported positive benefits compared to just 17 percent of the medical treatment only group who reported the same amount of improvement. This was true regarding both pain and level of function at the two- and four-week marks.

Accordingly, incorporating these two forms of care can greatly benefit you--the patient--offering benefits when compared to medical care alone. However, while chiropractic care and medicine can work together, chiropractic offers some unique strengths over medical therapy.

Where Chiropractic Wins

Although it may seem as if each approach plays a 50/50 role, there is one significant benefit that chiropractic care has over medical care and that is in patient satisfaction. In fact, a study conducted at UCLA² that was published in the American Journal of Public Health reports that, on average, chiropractic patients are generally more satisfied with their recovery than those undergoing medical care.

According to the researchers, the main factors that patients favored over medical treatment were "self-care advice and explanation of treatment." This isn't unexpected, as chiropractors typically spend much more time consulting with their patients as to how they can better their health on their own, as well as discussing more thoroughly what to expect from chiropractic.

Chiropractic Offers a Holistic Approach

Certainly, the methods associated with chiropractic are very different than those offered with medical treatment, but a large amount of the difference is the fact that chiropractic is a holistic approach to health and wellness. Instead of focusing on just relieving the symptoms, chiropractic care involves searching for the primary cause of your pain, which often translates to greater improvement as you are tackling the problem at its source.

Furthermore, while medication is sometimes helpful for managing certain conditions, many health issues respond well to a natural approach such as chiropractic care. This means fewer negative side effects from drugs and longer-lasting recovery.

You don't have to deal with back pain or other health issues. Give our Land O' Lakes, FL clinic a call today at (813) 996-9800. We'll work to help you get and continue to be free from back pain.

References

1. 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.
2. 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.