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The Efficacy Of
Chiropractic Treatment
For Lower Back Pain
2004: Volume
1,
Number 1
Craig Steingraber,
DC
The effectiveness
of chiropractic treatment for lower back pain is
under constant review. A meta-analysis in 2003
found spinal manipulation to be more effective
than sham therapy and no more or no less
effective than other treatments. (1)
However, reviewers
reported that there were major quality problems
in the studies analyzed, specifically regarding
data collection issues, and concluded that the
data "did not provide convincing evidence for
the effectiveness of chiropractic". (2)
On the other hand, in an analysis of eight
published studies conducted by NCCAM, six
studies showed similar results between
chiropractic and conventional treatment
regarding effectiveness. (1) One trial found
greater improvement in the chiropractic group
than in groups receiving either sham
manipulation or back school instruction. (3) The
last study showed that treatment at a
chiropractic clinic was more effective than
outpatient hospital treatment. (4)
As the study of the efficacy of spinal
manipulation for back pain continues, research
shows that chiropractic medicine is a CAM
therapy for treating back pain that compares
favorably to conventional therapies.
References
1.Hurwitz EL, Morgenstern H, Harber P, et al. A
randomized trial of medical care with and
without physical therapy and chiropractic care
with and without physical modalities for
patients with low back pain:6-month follow-up
outcomes from the UCLA low back pain study.
Spine. 2002;27(20):2193-2204.
2.Assendelft WJ, Koes BW, van der Heijden GJ, et
al. The effectiveness of chiropractic for
treatment of low back pain: an update and
attempt at statistical pooling.
3.Journal of
Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics.
1996;19(8):499-507.
4. Ernst E. Chiropractic spinal manipulation for
back pain. British Journal of Sports Medicine.
2003;37(3): 195-196. |
