Chiropractic and Medical Care: An Effective Combination

We see quite a few patients with back pain in our Wilsonville, OR practice, and Dr. Dale Burt Johnston, DC has been able to help a lot of them get relief with chiropractic care. However, dealing with back problems doesn't necessarily mean having to decide between chiropractic care and medical care, as many individuals utilize both types of care with great outcomes.

Research Confirms Chiropractic and Medical Care Work Well Together

In a study published by the academic journal Spine researchers¹ looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who were suffering from both acute discomfort and limited function due to back-related issues. Some of the study participants received treatment via standard medical therapy, while the rest were given chiropractic care as well as regular medical care, as the authors wanted to see which patients fared better.

Researchers determined that the group that got standard medical care in combination with chiropractic scored "significantly better" than the patients who got medical care alone; 73 percent reported positive benefits in comparison to just 17 percent of the medical care only group who reported the same amount of improvement. This was true regarding both pain and level of function at two and four weeks.

Accordingly, incorporating these two forms of care can greatly benefit you--the patient--offering benefits when compared to medical care alone. However, while chiropractic and medicine can work alongside each other, chiropractic offers some distinct advantages over medical therapy.

Where Chiropractic Care Is Successful

Although it may seem as if each method plays a 50-50 role, there is one significant advantage that chiropractic has over medical treatment and that is in patient satisfaction. In fact, one bit of research done 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 care.

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 tend to spend much more time advising their patients as to how they can better their health on their own, as well as outlining more thoroughly what to expect from chiropractic care.

Chiropractic Care Offers a Non-Invasive Approach

Without a doubt, the strategies associated with chiropractic are quite different than those available with medical care, but a large amount of the difference is the fact that chiropractic is a natural approach to health and well-being. Instead of focusing on simply relieving the symptoms, chiropractic care involves tracking down the primary cause of your pain, which often results in greater improvement as you are tackling the problem at its source.

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

You don't have to struggle with back pain or other health issues. Give our Wilsonville, OR office a call today at (503) 682-9046. We'll do everything we can to help you get and stay 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.