Chiropractic and Medical Care: An Effective Combination

We see many back pain patients in our Mt Sterling practice, and Dr. Linton has been able to help a lot of them get relief with chiropractic care. At the same time, recovering from back pain doesn't necessarily mean having to decide between chiropractic care and medical treatment, as many individuals utilize both types of care with great success.

Research Confirms Chiropractic and Medical Care Work Well with One Another

In a study published by the medical journal Spine experts¹ looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who were suffering from both acute discomfort and restricted function due to back symptoms. Some of the test subjects engaged in treatment via standard medical therapy, while the remainder received chiropractic care in addition to regular medical care, as the authors wanted to determine which group fared better.

The authors found that the group that received standard medical care in combination with chiropractic scored "significantly better" than the patients who received medical care alone; 73 percent reported positive benefits compared 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 the two- and four-week marks.

Accordingly, combining these two forms of care can greatly benefit you--the patient--offering advantages when compared to medical care alone. However, while chiropractic and medical approaches can work alongside each other, chiropractic offers some unique strengths over medical treatment.

Where Chiropractic Care Pulls Ahead

Although it might seem as if each method plays a 50-50 role, there is one significant advantage that chiropractic has over medical care and that is in patient satisfaction. In fact, one bit of research conducted at UCLA² that was printed in the American Journal of Public Health found that, on average, chiropractic patients are generally more satisfied with their recovery than patients undergoing medical treatment.

According to the experts, the main factors that patients liked over medical treatment were "self-care advice and explanation of treatment." This isn't surprising, as chiropractors frequently 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 care.

Chiropractic Offers a Non-Invasive Approach

Certainly, the strategies associated with chiropractic are very different than those provided with medical treatment, but a large amount of the distinction is the fact that chiropractic is a natural approach to health and well-being. Rather than focusing on just relieving the symptoms, chiropractic involves searching for the primary cause of your pain, which often means greater improvement as you are addressing the problem at its source.

In addition, while medication is sometimes helpful for treating certain conditions, many health issues respond well to natural forms of treatment such as chiropractic care. This means fewer negative side effects from medications and longer-lasting recovery.

You don't have to deal with back pain or other health issues. Give our Mt Sterling office a call today at (859) 499-1009. We'll do everything we can 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.