Back Pain Recovery with Chiropractic Treatment

Arlington Medical Care & Chiropractic: An Effective Combination

We see many patients with back pain in our Arlington office, and Dr. Ernst has been able to help many of them get relief through various chiropractic techniques. However, recovering from back pain doesn't necessarily mean having to decide between chiropractic care and medical care, as many individuals use both types of care with great outcomes.

Research Confirms Chiropractic and Medical Treatment Work Well with Each Other

In a study published by the academic journal Spine investigators¹ looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who claimed both acute discomfort and limited function due to back pain. Some of the study participants received treatment via standard medical therapy, while the remainder were given chiropractic care together with regular medical care, as the authors wanted to determine which patients fared better.

Researchers found that the patients who got standard medical care in combination with chiropractic scored "significantly better" than the group that received medical care alone; 73% reported positive benefits compared 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.

Accordingly, integrating these two forms of care can greatly benefit you, the patient, offering benefits when compared to medical care alone. However, while chiropractic care and medicine can work together, chiropractic offers some unique advantages over medical therapy.

Where Chiropractic Care Is Successful

Although it may seem as if each approach plays a 50-50 role, there is one major advantage that chiropractic has over medical care and that is in patient satisfaction. In fact, a study done 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 patients undergoing medical treatment.

According to the researchers, the main aspects that patients favored over medical treatment were "self-care advice and explanation of treatment." This isn't unexpected, as chiropractors commonly spend much more time consulting with their patients as to how they can better their health on their own, as well as outlining more thoroughly what to expect from chiropractic.

Chiropractic Care Offers a Non-Invasive Approach to Wellness

Certainly, the strategies associated with chiropractic are very different than those available with medical treatment, but a large amount of the distinction is the fact that chiropractic is a holistic approach to health and well-being. Instead of focusing on simply relieving the symptoms, chiropractic care means tracking down the primary cause of your pain, which often results in greater improvement as you are tackling the problem at its source.

Additionally, while medication is sometimes helpful for treating certain conditions, many health issues respond well to a natural approach like chiropractic care. This means fewer negative side effects from drugs and longer-lasting recovery.

You don't have to deal with back pain or other health problems. Give our Arlington clinic a call today at (360) 659-8464. We'll do everything we can to help you get and remain 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.