How Safe is Chiropractic?

We care for a large number of people in our Alexandria, KY office, and Dr. Michael Wagner D.C. has helped many people eliminate a variety of health challenges. However, a frequent worry that seems to prevent some men and women from getting treatment is whether or not chiropractic is safe. Well, according to three different studies (out of many on the issue), the answer to this concern is a clear: "Yes! Chiropractic is safe!"

Australian Study: Chiropractic is Safe

The first article(1) was published in Spine and included 183 women and men between the ages of 20 and 85. Each participant was suffering from some kind of back pain, and half of the individuals received real chiropractic adjustments whereas the other half were given two sham chiropractic treatments. Information was obtained after each real or fake adjustment to discover whether or not any undesirable side effects were caused by the genuine chiropractic treatments.

Researchers found that nobody reported any significant negative side effects whatsoever after receiving one or two sessions of chiropractic. Some individuals did state that they had a headache (just 9% of people) or muscle stiffness (about 1 out of 3) post-treatment, but the results were not serious.

National Survey Confirms that Chiropractic Care is Safe

The second article(2), also published in the important medical journal, Spine, was performed in an effort to determine the safety of chiropractic care. The test group was much larger as it involved just under 20,000 people. Each participant received chiropractic adjustments of the cervical spine, with over 50,000 total adjustments for all study participants.

Again, the investigators found no serious negative side effects. The experts calculated the risk of total adverse reactions to be approximately six out of every 10,000 consultations or every 100,000 treatment sessions. And, just as with the first study, some people did report non-serious, milder, unwanted 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 out of every 100), and this caused the authors to determine 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 Children

This third research paper(3) is unique from the previous two reports, as it concentrates on the safety of chiropractic care for kids. In this case, researchers analyzed results reported by both chiropractors and parents involving 816 children who participated in 7,173 chiropractic treatment sessions.

Out of 5,438 chiropractic appointments made for the children, chiropractors answering the survey reported only three cases where there were adverse 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 studies like these, chiropractic has been judged safe and effective for everyone. To discover what chiropractic can do for you, call our Alexandria, KY office and make an appointment today at (859) 448-0056.

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.