Chiropractic and Medical Care: An Effective Combination

We see many people with back pain in our Cary office, and Dr. Thomas Gugerli has helped many of them find relief with chiropractic. However, dealing with back problems doesn't necessarily mean having to decide between chiropractic care and medical therapy, as many individuals utilize both types of care with great outcomes.

Study Confirms Chiropractic and Medical Treatment Work Together

In a report published by the academic journal Spine experts¹ looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who claimed both acute discomfort and restricted function due to back-related issues. Some of the study participants engaged in treatment via standard medical therapy, while the remainder were given chiropractic adjustments as well as regular medical care, as researchers wanted to determine which patients fared better.

Researchers discovered that the group that got standard medical care along with chiropractic care scored "significantly better" than the group that got 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.

Therefore, integrating these two forms of treatment can greatly benefit you--the patient--offering advantages when compared to medical care alone. However, while chiropractic care and medical approaches can work together, chiropractic offers some distinct advantages over medical therapy.

Where Chiropractic Pulls Ahead

Although it may seem as if each approach plays a 50-50 role, there is one major benefit that chiropractic has over medical treatment 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 reports that, on average, chiropractic patients are generally more satisfied with their recovery than those undergoing medical care.

According to the researchers, the main aspects that patients preferred over medical care were "self-care advice and explanation of treatment." This isn't unexpected, as chiropractors commonly spend much more time advising their patients as to how they can better their health on their own, as well as explaining more carefully what to expect from chiropractic.

Chiropractic Care Offers a Non-Invasive Approach

Certainly, the methods associated with chiropractic are very different than those provided with medical care, but a great deal of the distinction is the fact that chiropractic is a holistic approach to health and well-being. Rather than focusing on only relieving the symptoms, chiropractic care involves tracking down the primary cause of your pain, which often means greater improvement as you are addressing the problem at its source.

Additionally, 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 responses to drugs and lasting results.

You don't have to deal with back pain or other health issues. Give our Cary clinic a call today at (919) 589-0909. 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.