Jan. 15, Cambridge, Mass. – A 2012 report issued by
Harvard Medical School endorses chiropractic for patients with short and medium
term low back pain (LBP).
Low back
pain can be highly uncomfortable, debilitating and disruptive for those who
suffer from it and has been implicated as a major factor in lost work time and
health care spending in North America.
The
Harvard Medical School Special Health Report, titled Low Back Pain – Healing
Your Aching Back (published
by Harvard Health Publications) outlines, for both health professionals and
lay-readers, factors leading or contributing to LBP and suggests therapeutic
options for patients who live with it.
Amongst these, chiropractic is listed as a viable therapeutic option for
patients suffering from acute LBP, noting that chiropractic relieves pain and
reduces the necessity of medication for some of these patients.
The
report quotes “a 2010 review of 12 different studies involving 2,887 people
with low back pain,” which concluded that “…chiropractic care improved short-
and medium-term pain more than other treatments, including exercise, physical
therapy, and medication….people who saw chiropractors also reported being less
disabled over the short term (one month) compared with people who received
other treatments such as standard medical therapy.” (page 26)*
The
report also states, “The best candidates for chiropractic manipulation are
people who have no sign of nerve impairment. For them, chiropractic care tends
to be satisfying and effective for acute low back pain” and notes that
chiropractic can also be effective in a team-based approach – including medical
doctors and allied health professionals – for relief of LBP."
To
receive this report –and other health reports – in full, and/or to obtain
permission to distribute it to patients and/or colleagues, please visit www.health.harvard.edu/
*Excerpts
reproduced with permission.
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