“Chiropractic
care is an important option to consider for musculoskeletal disorders—the most prevalent
pain complaint in the military.”
President
and CEO
A
study published in the scientific journal Spine in 2013 shows that active duty military
who receive chiropractic care along with standard medical care for low back
pain have a significant reduction in acute pain compared to colleagues who get standard
care only.
Patients
receiving chiropractic care also reported improved physical function. The study
is the result of a randomized controlled trial, the gold standard in scientific
evidence for health care policy, which took place over a period of 18 months at
William Beaumont Army Medical Center (WBAMC), Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas.
Participants were 91 active-duty military personnel between 18 and 35 years
old.
Samueli
Institute funded the Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research to conduct the study
to learn what works and to put good practices into use.
“It
is critical that we continue to explore drug-less approaches to reduce pain,”
said Wayne
B. Jonas, MD, President and CEO of Samueli Institute. “Chiropractic care is an important
option to consider for musculoskeletal disorders—the most prevalent pain complaint
in the military.”
Patients
with acute low back pain receiving a combination of chiropractic manipulative therapy
and standard medical care experienced a statistically and clinically
significant reduction in their back pain and improved physical functioning when
compared to those receiving standard medical care alone.
“This
is a significant step for recognizing the value of chiropractic care in the
military,” said Col. Richard Petri, Chief of the Interdisciplinary PainManagement Center (IPMC) at WBAMC. “Continued research in this area will
ultimately result in better healthcare delivery systems as well as the improved
health of our beneficiaries.”
The
study was conducted by Samueli Institute and Palmer College of Chiropractic.
The project was funded by Samueli Institute, out of grant #MDA905-03-C-0003
received from Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. The views,
opinions and/or findings contained in this report are those of the author(s)
and should not be construed as an official Department of the Army position,
policy or decision unless so designated by other documentation.
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