We tend to a large number of people in our Philadelphia clinic, and Bridesburg Spine and Injury Clinic has helped countless people overcome a variety of health issues. In spite of this, a frequent concern that seems to prevent some women and men from pursuing treatment is whether or not chiropractic care is safe. Luckily, according to three different studies (out of quite a few on the issue), the answer to this question is a clear: "Yes! Chiropractic is safe!"
The first article(1) was published in Spine and involved 183 men and women. Each individual reported suffering from spine-related pain, and half of the individuals received actual chiropractic care visits while the other half received two sham chiropractic treatments. Information was gathered after each real or fake adjustment to identify whether or not any unfavorable negative effects occurred as a result of the real chiropractic adjustments.
Researchers reported that none of the patients documented any significant undesirable side effects whatsoever after receiving one or two sessions of chiropractic care. Some participants did report that they had a headache (just 9% of people) or muscle stiffness (about 1 out of 3) after treatment, but the results were not serious.
The next research study(2), also published in the distinguished journal, Spine, was conducted in an attempt to ascertain 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 discovered no serious negative side effects. The experts computed the risk of total negative effects to be approximately 6 out of every 10,000 consultations or every 100,000 treatment sessions. And, just as with the previous study, some people did report non-serious, milder, side effects such as dizziness (less than 2%) or a headache (4%), and this prompted the researchers to conclude that "the risk of a serious adverse event, immediately or up to 7 days after treatment, was low to very low."
This third research paper(3) is unique from the first two pieces of research, as it focuses on the safety of chiropractic care for kids. In this article, the researchers investigated results reported by both chiropractors and parents involving 816 children who participated in 7,173 chiropractic adjustments.
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 questioned, they indicated only two adverse side effects out of 1,735 visits. Additionally, both chiropractors and parents reported "a high rate of improvement with respect to the children's presenting complaints."
Based on studies like these, chiropractic care has been judged safe and effective for everyone. To learn what chiropractic can do for you, call our Philadelphia office and schedule an appointment today at (215) 743-5330.
References
Dr. Anthony Calantoni is a chiropractic physician serving Philadelphia and the surrounding communities of Bridesburg, Port Richmond, Fishtown, Kensington, Mayfair, Tacony, Frankford, and Juniata. Bridesburg Spine and Injury Clinic is a State of the Art facility located in the Bridesburg section of Philadelphia. The office is dedicated to to the application of modern day physical medicine targeting your unique needs, whether you are suffering from excruciating back pain, neck pain, headaches, or even just plain old muscular tightness and discomfort. The office specializes in all types of injuries including Sports, Motor Vehicle , and Work Related.
