How Safe Is Chiropractic Care?
For the millions of people who suffer back pain and other ailments that are readily treated by chiropractors, a common concern is the safety of chiropractic care. While chiropractic techniques are widely recognized as being safe and effective, there remain doubts as to whether or not this is the best option for individuals suffering from the result of an accident, injury or muscle strain. Here we take a closer look at the safety of chiropractic care as well as the ailments commonly treated with this type of care.
What is chiropractic care?
Chiropractic care begins with trained chiropractors who perform hands-on spinal manipulation as well as other treatments to properly align the body’s musculoskeletal structure. Chiropractic care is based on the concept that when the body is properly aligned, it is better able to heal itself without the use of surgery or medication. Chiropractic care can be used on its own to treat and relieve pain for muscles, joints, cartilage, ligaments and tendons. It can also be used with conventional medical treatment.
Chiropractic care safety.
There are millions of patients who will attest to the benefits of chiropractic care. While every form of health treatment poses some risk of negative side effects, when performed correctly, chiropractic care has an excellent safety record. The key of course is making sure the chiropractor who performs the treatments is knowledgeable and skilled in the area of chiropractic care. Spinal manipulation when not properly administered could result in serious complications; therefore it is essential to find the right chiropractor who has the training and experience needed to perform adjustments.
Benefits versus risks.
The most common ailments treated with chiropractic care include back and neck pain, pain in the joints of the arms and legs as well as headaches. As with any other treatment designed to address physical ailments, there are no guaranteed results of chiropractic care. As a general rule, when performed correctly patients report feeling relief from pain after treatments, with some occasionally reporting soreness and aching. If the sense of soreness or aching is similar to that of which you would feel after exercise or some other physical exertion, it is usually normal and fades within a day. For many patients receiving chiropractic care, the short term pain relief is often better than that found after taking pain medication.
Despite the relief reported by patients with both acute and chronic pain, there are certain risks associated with chiropractic care. Spinal manipulation should be avoided by individuals who have osteoporosis, inflammatory arthritis or spinal cord compression. To avoid a bad chiropractic experience, you must take the time to find the right chiropractor to address your needs. There are thousands of chiropractors from which to choose, therefore it is important that you find one who is well trained and who has the experience to perform treatments with minimal risk. One should ask friends, family members or co-workers if they have any experience with chiropractic care and if so who they would recommend for treatment. By finding the right person to perform treatments, you increase the likelihood of success while reducing risk of injury.
Your Tulsa Chiropractor
Dr. Ryan Marshall, D.C.