manipulation beneficial for low back pain

Although BJ PALMER is considered to be the “Developer of Chiropractic”, ANDREW TAYLOR STILL (left) is still known as the “Father of Osteopathy”.  Unfortunately, most of our modern osteopaths have little in common with Dr. Still, and a lot in common with the medical community who is largely controlled and run by Big Pharma.  We will discuss this issue in a moment.  Right now I’d like to talk about the latest in a long line of studies on the benefits of Spinal Manipulation.

According to a recent study done by Dr. John Licciardone of Fort Worth’s Osteopathic Research Center, those with chronic low back pain (as opposed to acute low back pain) showed 30% more improvement than placebo during an 8 week course of care (six treatments).  On top of this, the patients who were treated with manipulation were much more likely to show improvements of 50% or more.  The study was published in the March / April edition of Annals of Family Medicine.  The study’s conclusions?  “Thus, low back pain reductions with treatment [osteopathic manipulations] were statistically significant and clinically relevant“.  The thing to remember is that many similar studies have shown the “sham manipulations” that comprise the placebo are actually themselves therapeutic on some level.  Thus, there is a chance that this 30% statistic might be even better than shown.

I find it interesting that despite that fact that people did significantly better with the Osteopathic Manipulations, the manipulations themselves were quite non-specific in this particular study.  In other words, the clinicians were not making specific adjustments in response to clinical findings such as x-ray, or palpitory misalignment.  The term “manipulations” in this study meant anything from, “stretching, kneading, isometric muscle activation, and thrusts“.

I love to see these types of studies, but here is the thing.  Over the past generation, we have seen NUMEROUS STUDIES on the effectiveness and cost efficacy of Chiropractic Care -vs- traditional medical care —- the “drugs & surgery first” approach.  The problem with this particular study is that the vast majority (at least 95%) of the therapeutic manipulation being done in America is done by chiropractors.  Although D.O.’s used to do much of the Spinal Manipulation, it is becoming a lost art among their profession (D.O.’s are the same as M.D.’s now).  Below are a couple of examples of this.  Notice how quickly use of Osteopathic Manipulative Therapy (OMT) is decreasing.  The studies were done by the same people at the same university, four years apart, with the latest study coming a dozen years ago.  I can assure you that the rate of OMT has declined further in that time — much further.

Listen; I am not picking on DO’s here.  The most conservative-minded doctor in our region is a DO.  But the fact remains that it is Chiropractors and not Osteopaths who do the vast majority of the manipulations in this country.  There is good reason for this.  For one, we have much more training in this area.  And let’s fact it; do you want to trust your spine to someone who does manipulation maybe a couple times a week, or someone who has made it one of the cornerstones of their practice?  For more information on Chiropractic, please visit THIS PAGE.

For more information on the way that Chiropractic Adjustments work in synchronicity with our TISSUE REMODELING TREATMENTS, please start HERE.  I might also suggest that you take just a few minutes to read about the incredibly fascinating century-old study where a medical doctor validated the Chiropractic profession scientifically; THE WINSOR AUTOPSIES.