Consumer Reports Study Validates Adults Favor Chiropractic as Preferred Care for Back Pain.

CARMICHAEL, Calif. -- With an estimated 80 percent of American adults in the United States likely to suffer with back pain, the Consumer Reports Health Rating Center surveyed over 14,000 individuals to determine their preferred method of care. According to results reported in May 2009 (www.consumerreports.org), 59 percent of those surveyed chose chiropractic spinal manipulation as the top-rated approach for back pain, rating chiropractic higher than physical therapy, massage therapy, acupuncture, or care from an M.D., physician specialist or primary care physician.

"Individuals who accessed care from a hands-on methods approach, such as chiropractic, expressed the highest satisfaction rates," reports Gerard W. Clum, D.C., president of Life Chiropractic College West, Hayward, California, and spokesperson for the Foundation for Chiropractic Progress. "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."

Dr. Clum points out that many people believe that medication and surgery offer a quick and easy solution to back pain, as that approach fits with what they are accustomed to doing. This type of outdated thinking is leading many people astray, according to The New York Times (Parker-Pope, April 2, 2009), "...the practice of medicine contains countless examples of elegant medical theories that belie the best available evidence."

"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 says that the survey results are not really surprising because, increasingly, more patients are turning to less invasive procedures to address back problems. Mounting evidence now instills confidence in providers and patients that chiropractic spinal adjusting can get the job done. Additionally, physicians are now more inclined to support a chiropractor referral.

"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."

He concludes that in many instances, it may be common for a doctor to write a prescription for pain medication or to seek a consultation for surgery, noting, "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."

About F4CP 

The Foundation for Chiropractic Progress is a 501c6 corporation that represents a cross section of the chiropractic and vendor communities with the goal of increasing the public's awareness of the benefits of chiropractic. www.F4CP.org