Is Chiropractic Safe?
Chiropractic has long been the target of negative press. Please read the following information to ease your worries, and contact us for further information.
“Clinical studies and systematic reviews from adult patients undergoing manual therapy, particularly spinal manipulation report that mild to moderate adverse events are common and self limiting. However serious adverse events are rare and much less than for medication commonly prescribed for these problems.” http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20525194
Australian Chiropractors Association Report
“Chiropractors provide patient-centered care and work in partnership with the consumers of chiropractic services. This includes using shared decision making thorugh the informed consent process and using communication strategies that are tailored to the needs and preferences of the patient. Good clinical decision making takes account of the patients’ preferences and values, clinicians values and experiences to provide treatment that miximises benefit with minimum risk of harm. This includes referral to other healthcare providers when indicated to ensure the best and most appropriate treatment and health outcome.” Chiropractic Association of Australia
“Published studies and reports through the National Registration and Accreditation Scheme show that chiropractic is a low risk health modality. While chiropractic treatment is generally considered safe, occasionally it may cause adverse reactions in some people.” Chiropractic Association of Australia
“Chiropractors are registered by the Chiropractic Board of Australia and like all other registered health care providers, must adhere to National Law and profession specific codes of conduct and guidelines.” Chiropractic Association of Australia
New Zealand Commission Report
“Chiropractors are the only health practitioners who are necessarily equipped by their education and training to carry out spinal manual therapy (spinal adjustments).” New Zealand Report. Hasselberg PD. Government Printer, Wellington - 1979
“Chiropractors carry out spinal diagnosis and therapy at a sophisticated and refined level.” New Zealand Report. Hasselberg PD. Government Printer, Wellington - 1979
“Spinal manual therapy in the hands of a registered chiropractor is safe.” New Zealand Report. Hasselberg PD. Government Printer, Wellington - 1979
“The duration and training of a registered chiropractor are sufficient to enable him/her to determine whether there are contraindications to spinal manual therapy in a particular case, and whether that patient should have medical care instead of, or as well as, chiropractic care.” New Zealand Report. Hasselberg PD. Government Printer, Wellington - 1979
Manga Report
“There is no clinical or case-control study that demonstrates or even implies that chiropractic spinal manipulations is unsafe in the treatment of low back pain. Some medical treatments are equally safe, but others are unsafe and generally iatrogenic (doctor-induced) complications for low back patients. Our reading of the literature suggests that chiropractic manipulation is safer than medical management of low back pain.” The Effectiveness and Cost Effectiveness of Chiropractic Management of Low-Back Pain. (The Manga Report). Pran Manga and Associates (1993) – University of Ottawa, Canada.)
“Indeed, several exisiting medical therapies of low back pain are generally contraindicated on the basis of the existing clinical trials. There is also some evidence in the literature to suggest that spinal manipulations are less safe and less effective when performed by non-chiropractic professionals.” The Effectiveness and Cost Effectiveness of Chiropractic Management of Low-Back Pain. (The Manga Report). Pran Manga and Associates (1993) – University of Ottawa, Canada.)
“Chiropractic manipulation is safer than medical management of low back pain. Chiropractic management is greatly superior to medical management in terms of scientific validity, safety, cost-effectiveness and patient satisfaction.” The Effectiveness and Cost Effectiveness of Chiropractic Management of Low-Back Pain. (The Manga Report). Pran Manga and Associates (1993) – University of Ottawa, Canada.)
Is Chiropractic Safe for Children?
“Chiropractic manipulations produced very few adverse effects and was a safe form of therapy in the treatment of patients in this age group.” Adverse effects of spinal manipulative therapy in children younger than 3 years: a retrospective study in a chiropractic teaching clinic. Miller JE, Benfield K. J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 2008 Jul-Aug; 31(6):419-23.doi:10.1016/j.jmpt.2008.06.002 http://www.jmptonline.org/article/S0161-4754(08)00175-9/abstract
COAG and the Safer Care Victoria Review
Kids
“Published cases of serious adverse events in infants and children receiving chiropractic, osteopathic, physiotherapy, or manual medical therapy are rare. The 3 deaths that have been reported were associated with various manual therapists; however, no deaths associated with chiropractic care were found in the literature to date. Because underlying preexisting pathology was associated in a majority of reported cases, performing a thorough history and examination to exclude anatomical or neurological anomalies before applying any manual therapy may further reduce adverse events across all manual therapy professions.” Adverse events due to chiropractic and other manual therapies for infants and children: a review of the literature. Todd AJ, Carroll MT, Robinson A, Mitchell EK. J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 2015 Nov-Dec; 38(9):699-712. Doi: 10.1016/j.jmpt.2014.09.008. Epub 2014 Oct 30.
"The application of modern chiropractic paediatric care within the outlined framework is safe. A reasonable caution to the parent/guardian is that one child per 100 to 200 attending may have a mild adverse event, with irritability or soreness lasting less than 24 hours, resolving without the need for additional care beyond initial chiropractic recommendations.” Is chiropractic paediatric care safe? A best evidence topic. Doyle MF. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1479235411000903
“There would be a chance of approximately 1 in 250 million pediatric visits that a neurological and/or vertebrobasilar complication would result. While some pre-existing conditions may predispose a pediatric patient to a higher incidence of such complications, the estimate derived in the present study are considered applicable to the general pediatric population.” Risk Assessment of Neurological and/or Vertebrobasilar Complications in the Pediatric Chiropractic Patient. J. Vertebral Subluxation Res., 2(2), Jun., 1998 http://www.chiropraktiker.cc/fileadmin/user_upload/safety_of_chiropractic_care_for_children.pdf
Is Chiropractic Care Safe During Pregnancy?
Chiropractic evaluation and treatment during pregnancy may be considered a safe and effective means of treating common musculoskeletal symptoms that affect pregnant patients. The scarcity of published literature warrants further research. Pregnancy and chiropractic: a narrative review of the literature. Borggren CL. J Chiropr Med. 2007 Jun;6(2):70-4. Doi: 10.1016/j.jcme.2007.04.004.