Chronic low back pain presents an incredible treatment challenge for doctors.  A recent study evaluated outcomes in 2 different means of treatment for chronic low back pain; chiropractic care and treatment at a pain clinic.  Chiropractic care produced better results for both pain and disability, in other words, the patients being treated by chiropractors had significantly less pain and greater function than patients being treated through the pain clinic. 

There are two important concepts to keep in mind with this study;

1) Chiropractic is probably the safest treatment modality available for people with low back pain.  Contrast this to a consistent profile of side-effects that goes along with drug-treatment at a pain clinic, and,

2) Chiropractic care offers long-lasting relief because it improves the body's function.  Pain-killers for pain are like having a problem with your car and putting in earplugs--you still have the problem, but you become less aware of it.  A hallmark of studies that compare chioropractic to drugs is that chiropractic patients maintain their benefits, whereas people using medication loose their benefits within hours of discontinuing there meds--whether researchers are looking at headache, low back pain, or neck pain, this holds true.

Read more about chiropractic studies on my chiropractic page--its what makes sense!

 Read the study here.
 

The use of high-dose antibiotics to treat children's middle-ear infections increased over 20-fold between 1996 and 2004.  One would expect that dramatic results are obtained by this treatment in order to justify the huge increase in a treatment riddled with side-effects.  A new study shows that this is not the case.  Failure rates in treatment have dropped only 1.3%, and relapse rates have increased by only .3%!

We would be much more productive if we treated with a combination of prevention and natural remedies.  Most research over the past decade has actually supported using less antibiotics for ear infections (see this paper that supports rational guidelines for antibiotic use).  We also know these things:

• Using herbs during cold and flu season, or when your child's immune system is run down, decreases the risk of developing colds, flu's, and other upper respiratory problems that put your child at risk of developing an ear infection.  These include:  echinacea, propolis, and Andrographis .
• Eating fermented foods rapidly increases the presence of healthy bacteria in mucous membranes--the bacteria compete with "bad" bacteria to help prevent ear infections.
• Chiropractic adjustments reduce the risk of ear infections and hasten recovery.

We also know that there are a host of side-effects associated with antibiotic use--some of which can be life long (read more here).  That being said, there absolutely are times when antibiotics are appropriate--if your child has a sustained high fever (over 103 degrees f), is listless, or is unable to kick an ear infection after several days, take him or her to see your holistic doctor for an opinion.

Read the study here. 

A new study shows that chiropractic can be an effective treatment for dysmenorreah, or pain associated with the menstrual cycle.  The study followed 16 women with dysmenorreah through a 4-week trial of chiropractic care.  The women had significant improvements in both low back pain and abdominal pain.

This study demonstrates how chiropractic adjustments can change pain and function in areas beyond the spine, and beyond what is traditionally thought to be beyond the "musculoskeletal system".   

In addition to having your spine checked by a chiropractor, it is important to look into dietary changes and amino acid therapy if you suffer from dysmenorrhea.  I have many patients who experience significant relief using 5-HTP and high dose fish oil.  The 5-HTP can be converted to serotonin by your brain to inhibit pain, and the omega-3's in the fish oil have a powerful anti-inflammatory effect. 

Read the study here. 

Patients often seek care in my office for migraine headaches--as a rule they are pleasantly surprised with the results attained through chiropractic care.  

Research studies on the subject demonstrate the following benefits with chiropractic:

• 60% reduction in migraine frequency (less than half the migraines!)
• 14% reduction in pain during migraine
• 20% reduction in duration of migraine
• 36% reduction in medication needed for migraine

 Other research on the subject has yielded similar results.  I believe that chiropractic should be the first choice in treating migraine because 1)there is minimal chance of adverse reactions--its very safe, 2)benefits from chiropractic care are long lasting, not temporary as with medication, and 3)chiropractic care treats the source of the problem for most people with migraines, a poorly functioning neck.  

Read the full text study on Chiropractic and migraine here.

New guidelines in the October edition of Annals of Internal Medicine make an excellent recommendation for treatment of low back pain:  "For patients who do not improve with selfcare options, clinicians should consider the addition of nonpharmacologic therapy with proven benefits—for acute low back pain, spinal manipulation; for chronic or subacute low back pain, intensive interdisciplinary rehabilitation, exercise therapy, acupuncture, massage therapy, spinal manipulation, yoga, cognitive-behavioral therapy, or progressive relaxation..."

Chiropractic patients can attest to the benefits of spinal manipulation, and scientific evidence has accumulated to the point where the medical profession cannot deny these benefits.  I truly hope that the medical profession will take the advice of the experts in their field who are now recommending chiropractic care for patients with low back pain...rather they will or not is another story!  Most of the patients who come to my clinic  after seeing a medical doctor report that chiropractic care was not even discussed and that they were prescribed narcotic medication and muscle relaxers.  These drugs are discouraged in all current medical guidelines...will treatment change with this new set of guides?

A few months ago a pop magazine called "Self" ran an article on chiropractic treatment that was complete bogus.  The article featured a woman who had suffered a stroke after a chiropractic treatment and blamed the treatment for the stroke.  The article ran several pages and included fanatical quotes form anti-chiropractic medical doctors.  It did not, however, contain a shred of relevant research.  Nor did it address risks of alternatives to chiropractic care, such as medical care--which, believe it or not, is the number one cause of death in this country!  If you don't believe it click here.

Stroke risk with chiropractic care has been brought up in the press several times in the past few years, and I want to set the record straight.  A new study just came out in the world's premier orthopedic journal, Spine.  The authors of the study followed over 19,000 patients through more than 50,000 chiropractic treatments.  There was not a single serious adverse reaction to care (read the study here).

Another study conducted by a task force will be published in an upcoming edition of Spine.  In it, authors report that while rarely an individual does experience a stroke after being treated by a chiropractor, these individuals likely would experience the stroke regardless of being treated.  To illustrate this concept, consider a woman in the early stages of MS (multiple sclerosis) who is experiencing vision changes due to the disease.  She may report to an ophthalmologist for an eye exam.  Later that month she may experience difficulties with coordination and be diagnosed with MS.  Blaming chiropractic for stroke would be like blaming the ophthalmologist for MS.

It is unfortunate that there are some old-school pillars of Western Medicine that are resistant and threatened by chiropractic.  I recommend that you share your chiropractic success stories with your medical doctor as part of an educational effort!  In an ideal world patients would see their chiropractor first for pain and muscle, joint, and nerve problems.  See this article on a study involving an HMO that required patients to see their chiropractor first.

 

Low-level laser therapy is beneficial for low back pain, researchers say.  The new study involved people with chronic low back pain either exercising, using low-level laser, or both for 6 weeks.  While results were similar among all groups at 6 weeks, the low-level laser-plus-exercise group had much better results at 12 weeks.

I’ve used low-level laser in my office for nearly 2 years, and am constantly pleased with the results I get.  It’s too bad they didn’t use chiropractic in this study—it would have blown them away—read an overview of the research on chiropractic and low back pain here.

Here is a link to my low back at-home exercise rehabilitation program.

Read the study here.

A new paper reviewed the research on chiropractic care for disorders beyond pain.  The results were what a practicing doctor would expect, but may be surprising to many who have not experienced chiropractic.  The researchers concluded that "Evidence from controlled studies and usual practice supports chiropractic care" for the following disorders:

•  Asthma
• Cervicogenic Vertigo (dizziness due to neck problems)
• Infantile colic
• Ear infection (otitis media)
• Elderly patients with pneumonia

Chiropractic is a system of healthcare that supports the bodies natural ability to heal itself.  Never underestimate that power!

Read the study here.

More on Chiropractic here.

New research demonstrates the dramatic effects of chiropractic care for people with ankylosing spondylitis.  Ankylosing spondylitits, or AS, is a progressive inflammatory arthritis of the spine that eventually results in stiffness and fusion of spinal joints.  Researchers in this most recent study evaluated a 34 year-old male with a 10 year diagnosis of AS during an 18 week course of chiropractic treatment.  The results were profound, "There was a 90% improvement in the disease activity index and an 85% improvement in the functional index from the pre-treatment baseline..."

I have the privilege of seeing people's function returning with chiropractic care on a regular basis--people regaining the ability to walk, run, throw, and enjoy life pain free.  Read more about chiropractic here.

Read the study here. 

A new study again demonstrates that low level laser therapy aids in nerve regeneration.  The study was done by cutting the peroneal nerve (a nerve that innervates the lower leg) in rabbits (those poor rabbits--they use rabbits because its illegal to use lawyers).  The rabbits were then divided into 2 groups--one that received low level laser therapy for ten days, and one group that did not.  As expected, the rabbits undergoing laser therapy regenerated the peroneal nerve quicker, had better function, and upon dissection the nerve showed more organized repair.

I use low level laser therapy in my office and it truly works wonders!  The most common disorders that I treat with it are: TMJ, carpal tunnel syndrome, tarsal tunnel syndrome, tennis elbow, shoulder impingement, and nerve injuries.  It also works well to speed the healing of bruises and scrapes.

Read the study here.