August 2023 Healthy News from Minster Chiropractic Center Less Gabapentin Prescription and Pain with Chiropractic Care Back Pain & Hip Flexibility Link

picture of no pill sign

The Choice of Chiropractic Care First for Back Pain: Reduced Gabapentin Prescription, Reduced Pain, Less Healthcare Use

Back pain is disruptive. Its sufferers desire relief. Would it not be great if a pill would do it?! Many back pain sufferers step into the back pain relief medical system and are given prescriptions for meds first. They take them in hopes that they’ll get relief. (Because this is so common, we chiropractors acknowledge that we need to be well-trained in identifying patients who may have a substance use issue and understand how to help if the use is an issue. (1)) Recent research notes that the first-choice healthcare provider makes a difference in patients’ utilization of healthcare services. A review of 29,806 patient cases that analyzed utilization of healthcare for the year following the first visit and found that use was lower for those who decided on chiropractic care first. The greatest health care utilization was seen for those who visited the emergency room as their first healthcare visit for back pain relief. (2) Another study noted that for patients under 50 years old who are suffering low back pain, two usual options of care and of care providers are spinal manipulation from a chiropractor and pharmacological prescription of gabapentin from a medical provider. Prescriptions for gabapentin were significantly lower for those who used chiropractic spinal manipulative care than those who used usual medical care. (3) Your chiropractor appreciates the value of interdisciplinary care and works with healthcare colleagues for the benefit of our back pain patients whenever possible and the value of provider choice with regards to relief and care. Your Minster chiropractor at Minster Chiropractic Center is confident to help our Minster back pain patients with our effective chiropractic services!

Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Kurt Olding on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson about the many choices back pain patients in “The Spine Care ‘Supermarket’” and how choosing The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management helps manage the pain.

 
TIP OF THE MONTH: Improve Hip Flexibility, Relieve Back Pain

When the hips are tight, the back gets stressed, and movement is modified. Remember: Everything is connected! Researchers who evaluated hip rotation range of motion in participants who experienced back pain and those who didn’t found that those with low back pain had remarkably restricted hip lateral rotation range of motion. (4) Luckily, there are methods to improve hip flexibility. One new method is auricular acupressure. What is that? Ask at your next appointment, but it enhanced hip flexibility (and back pain!) in one new study. (5) Another study hyped the benefit of core stability exercise and hip muscle stretching as effective at improving physical function and activity in non-specific low back pain patients. (6) We can check your hip flexibility out at your next Minster chiropractic appointment and plan a way to maximize it!

CONTACT Minster Chiropractic Center

Schedule your next Minster chiropractic appointment with Minster Chiropractic Center now. We look forward to seeing you soon!

"This information and website content is not intended to diagnose, guarantee results, or recommend specific treatment or activity. It is designed to educate and inform only. Please consult your physician for a thorough examination leading to a diagnosis and well-planned treatment strategy. See more details on the DISCLAIMER page. Content is reviewed by Dr. James M. Cox I."