For many, chiropractic care is the primary form of healthcare trusted to stay healthy and strong. However, for a few, there is a perpetuating fear about the safety of chiropractic care. Personally, I think it’s because they watch too many movies! Just kidding, but the fear exists for some people regardless safety statistics and how detailed the proof is. I hear it all the time…stories about somebody, who knows somebody, who knows a medical doctor, who sees these people all time in the ER…etc. Here are a few facts to put your mind at ease:
- Professional liability (malpractice) insurance is based on claims paid due to actual injuries caused and the data is aggregated nationally. Among ALL healthcare professionals including dentists and nurses, chiropractor’s rates are the lowest. It’s simple; chiropractic care is so safe the insurance rates reflect it.
- People confuse “manipulation” with a chiropractic “adjustment.” If they were the same thing then they would have the same name. Many non chiropractic practitioners (from massage therapists to osteopaths) use manipulation to mobilize joints and break up scar tissue, etc., however, those procedures can vary drastically from an adjustment in application and intent. The intent of an adjustment is to remove nerve disturbances called subluxations. Manipulation’s intent is to mobilize joints only.
- There’s been much controversy over a connection between stroke and chiropractic. The most important thing to know here is the difference between correlation and cause. Just because two things happen within a few weeks of each other doesn’t mean one caused the other. The science on this issue does a great job of setting it straight. The most recent study performed is in the Journal of Chiropractic and Manual Therapies entitled Chiropractic care and the risk of vertebrobasilar stroke: results of a case–control study in U.S. commercial and Medicare Advantage populations. This study has 58 references, 1,829 stroke cases, and lasted from Jan. 2011-Dec. 2013, and concluded: We found no significant association between exposure to chiropractic care and the risk of VBA stroke. We conclude that manipulation is an unlikely cause of VBA stroke.
- It is important to understand the risks associated with some of the most common pain treatments—prescription nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDS)—as these options may carry risks significantly greater than those of manipulation. According to a study from the American Journal of Gastroenterology, approximately one-third of all hospitalizations and deaths related to gastrointestinal bleeding can be attributed to the use of aspirin or NSAID painkillers like ibuprofen. It’s estimated that 120,000 deaths per year are attributed to NSAIDS and zero to chiropractic care.
I feel chiropractic care is very likely the safest health care profession that exists considering the volume of adjustments and results delivered. After practicing for 15 years and delivering hundreds of thousands of precise and measured adjustments I can tell you with certainty how safe and effective they are. Come on in, I’d love to be a part of your wellness team!
