Adults Favor Chiropractic As Preferred Care For Back Pain

The Foundation for Chiropractic Progress issued a release published on May 6, 2009 in Earthtimes noting that according to a recent Consumer Reports study, consumers ranked chiropractic highest for relief of back pain. The release noted that Consumer Reports Health Rating Center surveyed over 14,000 people to determine their preferred method of care for back pain. Chiropractic came out the highest with 59% choosing chiropractic.

Gerard W. Clum, D.C., president of Life Chiropractic College West, Hayward, California, and spokesperson for the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress, commented, “Individuals who accessed care from a hands-on methods approach, such as chiropractic, expressed the highest satisfaction rates.” Dr. Clum continued, “These people sought relief, having suffered with back pain that undoubtedly interfered with their everyday activities and limited their daily routines, sleep patterns, work responsibilities, and efforts to maintain healthy weight. Chiropractic care provided the help they were looking for.”

The release notes that traditionally, people thought first about drugs or surgery for back ailments. This past misinformation created many problems. “Unfortunately, this lack of information can lead to costly and unnecessary interventions and diagnostic testing by physicians who take an ‘ideological approach’ to back pain,” says Dr. Clum. “It is wise to explore conservative options for pain management once a more serious condition has been ruled out.”

Dr. Clum noted the real value of a study that actually asks consumers their opinion. “The Consumer Reports survey is an example of end-user oriented research,” he says. “As more evidence emerges, we hope that physicians will start to shift from traditional treatment ideology to approaches to back pain that would offer more benefit to patients and avoid medication and surgery whenever and wherever possible.”

It is the hope of the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress and Dr. Clum that the previous medical mind-set will shift with this new information. Dr. Clum summed up his feelings by saying, “The traditional, often outdated approaches may lead to unnecessarily expensive and invasive treatment with undesirable results. It is clear that patients now recognize and appreciate the benefits of chiropractic care.”