Minster Chiropractic Center Explains the Value of Chiropractic Research
Research makes the healthcare world go ‘round! Research established the role of healthcare’s pain relieving ability. For chiropractic healthcare, much research revolves around documenting chiropractic’s benefit for painful musculoskeletal conditions like back pain, neck pain, arm pain and sciatic leg pain. Minster Chiropractic Center delivers just such effective, research-documented care to our Minster chiropractic patients.
CHALLENGE: DO HIGH QUALITY RESEARCH
A set of back pain researchers challenged fellow researchers to create long-term plans to reduce the burden of low back pain on sufferers and healthcare systems. They clarified that developing effective strategies continues to be a huge task for back pain clinicians, doctors, and researchers. Vexingly, back pain disability levels have not increased despite an increased quantity of published research papers about back pain care. No consensus on the optimal way to manage low back pain has been agreed upon. Non-drug and non-invasive methods like exercise, manual therapy, massage, and such are typical recommendations. Another group of reviewing researchers pointed to a few issues with back pain research: design and analysis within the treatment clinical trials. (1) Designing research studies is difficult. Designing a “sham” protocol for spinal manipulation that feels like spinal manipulation is really challenging. (Just touching a spine can be relieving some, but that is a topic for another discussion!) Observational studies are the next in line. How so? Researchers observe how patients respond when they experience treatment and describe changes and effects. Fortuitously, Cox® Technic research has a mix of biomechanical and clinical observational studies resulting in case reports, case series, as well as retrospective and prospective clinical studies. Minster Chiropractic Center feels this mix of research support helps define to our Minster chiropractic patients what clinical outcome relief they may anticipate.
MINIMAL CLINICAL IMPORTANCE
Occasionally, chiropractic physicians and low back pain patients alike find themselves disappointed with the outcomes of treatment for back pain. They should not be! In medicine, the minimal clinically important difference (MCID) is defined as 30% or 20% and even 10% improvement. That’s reported as an “effective” outcome. Cox® Technic has offered 50% improvement in 30 days as the goal…and still does. Many times, chiropractic patients find that 50% relief in fewer than 30 days and that the 50% relief is closer to 70% or 80% or 90%! Sometimes, a patient’s response may be slower in reaching relief or only reaches 30% or 40%. Some patients desire more while others, especially patients who have previously gone through back surgery or sought non-relieving care from many other providers, are thrilled. A study of 1232 low back pain subjects discovered a MCID pain intensity of 2 (meaning a 2 point move on a scale of 0 no pain to 10 worst imaginable pain). That is not a huge move but is realistic. (2) It’s a statistic to consider. Compared with medical and surgical outcomes for back pain treatment that are as low as 10% or 30% expected improvement MCID, our Minster chiropractic clinical outcome objectives are high and often achieved.
THE CHALLENGE OF CHIROPRACTIC RESEARCH – AND HOW CHIROPRACTIC ANSWERS
Chiropractic, like other complementary and integrative healthcare professions, experiences a little more effort in maintaining a flow of research as many programs are not incorporated into large university situations with well-established and well-financed research departments. Global chiropractic researchers are seeking am amswer. Australia, Canada, and Denmark chiropractic researchers have created a leadership academy (CARL – Chiropractic Academy for Research Leadership) for early-career chiropractic researchers to stimulate more chiropractic research. US-based researchers are turning to the RAND Corporation’s Center for Collaborative CIH Research to combine research talent and assets to elevate chiropractic’s quality and quantity of research. (3,4) Solid research carries on at chiropractic universities to document the benefits of chiropractic for musculoskeletal-related pain like back pain, neck pain, arm pain and leg pain.
CONTACT Minster Chiropractic Center
Listen to this PODCAST with Ram Gudavalli, PhD, principal investigator of many Cox® Technic research studies, on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he explains research studies of which he’s been a part.
Make your next Minster chiropractic appointment now. Bring your questions about the research supporting our chiropractic care with you! Minster Chiropractic Center loves to share research!
