Effective Back Pain Treatment

We see quite a few back pain patients in our West Palm Beach office, and Dr. Dennis has been able to help many of them find relief with chiropractic. At the same time, dealing with back pain doesn't necessarily mean having to decide between chiropractic care and medical treatment, as many individuals use both types of care with great outcomes.

Study Confirms Chiropractic and Medical Care Work Well Together

In a report published by the academic journal Spine investigators¹ looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who reported both acute soreness and restricted function due to back-related issues. Some of the test subjects received treatment via standard medical therapy, while the rest were given chiropractic care in addition to standard medical care, as researchers wanted to determine which group fared better.

The authors determined that the patients who got standard medical care in combination with chiropractic care scored "significantly better" than the patients who got medical care alone; 73 percent reported positive benefits in comparison to just 17% 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.

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

Where Chiropractic Care Pulls Ahead

Although it might seem as if each approach plays a 50/50 role, there is one major benefit that chiropractic has over medical care and that is in patient satisfaction. In fact, a study 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 experts, the main aspects that patients favored over medical treatment were "self-care advice and explanation of treatment." This isn't unexpected, as chiropractors frequently spend much more time advising their patients as to how they can improve their health on their own, as well as explaining more thoroughly what to expect from chiropractic care.

Chiropractic Is a Natural Approach to Wellness

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

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

You don't have to suffer from back pain or other health problems. Give our West Palm Beach office a call today at (561) 966-6171. We'll do our best 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.