Articles for Your Health

If you or someone you know is suffering from back pain, don't rush off to get surgery. There is considerable evidence supporting the value of conservative, nonsurgical treatments for back pain; further, a study in The New England Journal of Medicine asserts that surgery is overused for the treatment of back pain.

The study in question, which served to defined guidelines for low back pain (LBP) treatment, states that intervention is only recommended for back pain that persists beyond three weeks. Among the treatments recommended to minimize the recurrence of chronic LBP were intensive strengthening exercise and aerobic conditioning. Also, the study states that radiography and more advanced imaging procedures (i.e., MRI) are overused and should be considered only in cases of severe nerve pain, loss of function, or suspicion of underlying systemic disease. And here's the most important point: Surgery should only be considered after all conservative methods have failed.

Among these alternatives to medical intervention, the report finds chiropractic care to be effective and massage therapy to show promise. The study does not recommend bedrest for chronic LBP or pain from nerve involvement. The main recommendation, based upon this study's new guidelines, is a rapid return to normal activities, which includes a regular regiment of exercise to keep the back and leg muscles conditioned. For more information, consult your doctor and access online information at http://www.chiroweb.com/tyh/backpain.html.

Reference: Deyo R, Weinstein J, et al. Low back pain. The New England Journal of Medicine 2001:344(5), pp363-369.

A recent media report has put the scare on patients to visit chiropractors for fear of stroke. This report was based on a study  that reviewed 64 medical legal cases involving cerebrovascular ischemic events occurring after cervical spin manipulation. It turns out that in fact 25% of these cases initially presented to the chiropractor with symptoms associated with cerebral artery dissection already in progress. If fact one reported case did not even have manipulation actually performed.  The authors found no significant pattern relating stroke to the number of manipulations and concluded that they randomly occur and are unpredictable complications of any neck movement including manipulation. Therefore they could occur at any point in the treatment course as well as with activities of daily living.

Head Toward Alternative Medicine

Many people suffer from chronic headache pain, despite a wide variety of treatment options. Those who find relief through drugs often must deal with negative side effects. Complementary and alternative medicines, or CAM therapies, are increasingly being considered by those who cannot find symptom relief elsewhere.

Seventy-three severe headache patients at an outpatient head/neck pain clinic in New York were recently interviewed about their knowledge, use, and opinions about CAM. Researchers found that 85% of the patients used some form of alternative therapy for their headaches, and 60% claimed the therapies benefited their pain. Nearly 90% of the sufferers thought some form of CAM treatment would be effective for headache pain. The following represent some of the most-used CAM therapies for headache, based on patient response:

• massage (42%);
• exercise (30%);
• acupuncture (19%);
• chiropractic (15%); and
• herbs (15%).

If you suffer from headaches or other conditions that don't respond adequately to standard medical care, consider some form of CAM therapy. Be careful, however, as not all forms of alternative therapy are proven safe or effective. Research any form of treatment before you consider using it, and ask your doctor of chiropractic about its validity. The Multimed Center offers all the above alternative methods of care in a coordinated fashion.

Reference: Von Peter S, Ting W, Scrivani S, et al. Survey on the use of complementary and alternative medicine among patients with headache syndromes. Cephalagia 2002:22, pp. 395-400.