Finding a good chiropractor is important for everyone who desires to take a proactive approach to protecting his or her health. Whether you are batting back pain from an injury, are an athlete or just want to live your life to its fullest health potential, chiropractic care has been proven to offer numerous benefits that can increase quality of life. Below is what the research says about three of these benefits.
Neck Pain and Low Back Pain
One study published in the British Medical Journal examined 183 patients who experienced neck pain. The patients were randomly chosen to either receive manual chiropractic therapy, general practitioner care, physiotherapy over a period of 52 weeks. The results showed that those who received chiropractic adjustments experienced faster recovery than physiotherapy and care by a general practitioner. Furthermore, the costs patients incurred for chiropractic treatment were found to be about one-third of the costs of the other two types of treatment.
A study from the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics determined that patients who experienced chronic low back pain and were treated by chiropractic care had greater satisfaction and improvement 30 days after treatment in comparison to those treated by family physicians. Satisfaction rates were significantly higher, likely due to the fact that the low back pain symptoms were more improved in chiropractic patients (56 percent for chiropractic patients vs 13 percent for those seen by physicians). Low back pain treatment options are available in Georgia.
Sciatica
Very few medical interventions can provide back pain relief like chiropractic care can. According to findings published in the European Spine Journal, a clinical trial unveiled how chiropractic treatments had an astounding 72 percent success rate in treating sciatica-related symptoms in patients. Traditional physical therapy has a 20 percent success rate and corticosteroid injections only have a 50 percent rate.
One study published in the Spine Journal compared active chiropractic manipulations on patients with sciatic nerve pain who were staying in rehabilitation centers vs simulated ones. The active manipulations were found to reduce the number days patients had moderate to severe back pain symptoms and other symptoms of sciatica. The chiropractic treatments also had no reported adverse effects.
Acid Reflux, Ear Infections and Colic in Children
Few randomized control trials have taken place to describe other clinical effects of chiropractic treatment on children, but many case studies have been noted that describe how children suffering from ailments, such as acid reflux an otitis media (ear infections), have experienced almost complete resolution after only a few visits to a chiropractor. One study in particular found that children suffering from acid reflux had notable improvement within four visits and total resolution of symptoms within three months of chiropractic care.
A review published in the journal Explore found that chiropractic adjustments had a significant impact on the reduction of colic symptoms in children. The authors of this systematic review noted that chiropractic care is a viable alternative treatment for infantile colic with no adverse events, unlike other medical care options.
Stay tuned for more evidence based reasons to consider seeing a chiropractor for the overall health of you and those you love.