Chiropractor--pros and cons

[Robert Maxwell]

This much is certain; Chiropractors cannot cure scoliosis, and if they make even a small mistake, you can be paralyzed for life. It takes great skill to manipulate the spine without causing damage, something that should be left to a physical therapist (around here you can set up an appointment with one to work on your back). You take too many risks with a Chiropractor, I think. There's too much of a gamble when trying to find a legitimate practitioner in that field.

Although I am not sold on the benefits of chiropractic, what you've posted here is just fearmongering. Paralysis is extremely rare as a result of chiropractic treatment--and certainly much less likely than if you had invasive back surgery.

I suggest you read the Mayo Clinic's overview of chiropractic care.

Chiropractic care, beneficial or not, is generally safe and statistically less risky than back surgery.

I never said paralysis by Chiropracty was common. I never even indicated that the majority of people who visit a Chiropractor would be paralyzed, neither many or even some, but I did stress the need to verify the credentials of any Chiropractor, even pointing people to a group of Chiropractors who base their work on science based medicine and not alternative medicine.

Chiropracty based on alternative medicine is dangerous.

You claimed it was "unsafe," implying it was less safe than more mainstream alternatives, which is demonstrably false.

 

[iamtosk]

I grew up with chiropractic(my father is one) and have nothing but good things to say about it.

Some chiropractors are not very skilled and simply do "the flying 5". This is just a quick realignment and not tailored to an individual or particularly helpful.

I would recommend finding a chiropractor who practices "applied kineisiology(AK)". These guys know their stuff. This brand of chiropractic can be extremely helpful for a multitude of ailments including scoliosis.

Don't be afraid that you are going to end up with paralysis. That is just silly and will NEVER happen with a competent DC.

 

[Kirby]

I've been going to a chiropractor for about 9 years now and I will vouch that it works. I was in a car accident in 1998 and symptoms of whiplash didnt show up for about a year and a half, which apparently isn't that uncommon.
My neck started getting worse and worse and my doctor told me to take a handful of ibuprofen several times a day, and said that I'd probably have to have spinal surgery (this was even before they did an MRI).

A coworker recommended that I try a chiropractor first. The first couple of weeks were pretty rough with 2 or 3 adjustments per week, plus massage. That later became once a week for a few years, and now I only go every couple of months and I feel great.

Oh, and if the chiropractor gives you exercises to do at home, DO THEM!

 

[Amaris]

Although I am not sold on the benefits of chiropractic, what you've posted here is just fearmongering. Paralysis is extremely rare as a result of chiropractic treatment--and certainly much less likely than if you had invasive back surgery.

I suggest you read the Mayo Clinic's overview of chiropractic care.

Chiropractic care, beneficial or not, is generally safe and statistically less risky than back surgery.

I never said paralysis by Chiropracty was common. I never even indicated that the majority of people who visit a Chiropractor would be paralyzed, neither many or even some, but I did stress the need to verify the credentials of any Chiropractor, even pointing people to a group of Chiropractors who base their work on science based medicine and not alternative medicine.

Chiropracty based on alternative medicine is dangerous.

You claimed it was "unsafe," implying it was less safe than more mainstream alternatives, which is demonstrably false.

Chiropracty based on alternative medicine is unsafe. Notice my continued desire to separate science medicine based Chiropracty and alternative medicine based Chiropracty. I'm doing that for a reason. Chiropracty started as a pseudoscience, and over time has managed to enter the mainstream as a somewhat respected alternative to regular therapy.

There are a number of Chiropractors who have made the effort to put science into the practice, and some of them started off as therapists but found there was a lot more money in treating people every so many weeks over the course of 15-20 years than for a much more limited time, but it started as another sham designed to make money off the ignorant.

 

[Timby]

Come off it, dude. This was your original post:

I would recommend against it. While there are Chiropractors out there who follow science medicine, there are also a massive number of frauds who are more into alternative/holistic non-evidence based medicine. When it comes to your spine and joints, one wrong move can be debilitating, and make you a paraplegic for life. Check out a few articles on Chiropractic medicine. Most of it is not science based, though there are major courses on anatomy and physiology, and instead falls back on pseudosciences to make it's claims.

Your entire message is discouraging anyone from going to a chiropractor, and I'm really wondering what kind of experience you have with the field.

For the record, the three chiropractors I've gone to are not only doctors (with degrees and everything!) but have given me demonstrable results. I'll always have back pain, but the infrequent (once every two years, at most) visits I've made to chiropractors has made me more comfortable. The idea of correcting the spine isn't voodoo, you know.

 

[Amaris]

Come off it, dude. This was your original post:

I would recommend against it. While there are Chiropractors out there who follow science medicine, there are also a massive number of frauds who are more into alternative/holistic non-evidence based medicine. When it comes to your spine and joints, one wrong move can be debilitating, and make you a paraplegic for life. Check out a few articles on Chiropractic medicine. Most of it is not science based, though there are major courses on anatomy and physiology, and instead falls back on pseudosciences to make it's claims.

Your entire message is discouraging anyone from going to a chiropractor, and I'm really wondering what kind of experience you have with the field.

For the record, the three chiropractors I've gone to are not only doctors (with degrees and everything!) but have given me demonstrable results. I'll always have back pain, but the infrequent (once every two years, at most) visits I've made to chiropractors has made me more comfortable. The idea of correcting the spine isn't voodoo, you know.

Damned right I recommend against it, but I have made the distinction that there are legitimate Chiropractors who follow science based medicine. The idea of correcting the spine may not be voodoo, but the origins of Chiropracty are based on such things; Phrenology, Mesmerism, and so on. That's what Daniel David Palmer, the founder of modern Chiropracty, believed in, and that's what he was pushing when he founded the medicine itself.

 

[Peach Wookiee]

I've been going to a chiropractor for about 9 years now and I will vouch that it works. I was in a car accident in 1998 and symptoms of whiplash didnt show up for about a year and a half, which apparently isn't that uncommon.
My neck started getting worse and worse and my doctor told me to take a handful of ibuprofen several times a day, and said that I'd probably have to have spinal surgery (this was even before they did an MRI).

A coworker recommended that I try a chiropractor first. The first couple of weeks were pretty rough with 2 or 3 adjustments per week, plus massage. That later became once a week for a few years, and now I only go every couple of months and I feel great.

Oh, and if the chiropractor gives you exercises to do at home, DO THEM!

I went straight to my chiropractor the morning after my fender bender and my neck actually feels better than before the accident!

 

[Velocity]

Why is it that all the people I know who go to chiropractors continue to go on a regular basis for many years? They have never been healed it looks like. I mean, they have neck pain, or shoulder pain and it never goes away because they keep going back for treatments. If my doctor couldn't do better than that, I'd find another one, but they keep going--some over 20 years.

 

[sttngfan1701d]

I'm not one of those people that preaches the evils of modern medicine or anything, but when all MD's could suggest for my back problems were pain killers and cortizone shots, a chiropractor CORRECTED the issue (sacroiliitis). So I say that if you can find one that's recommended, go for it.

 

[DBR]

I had been under the impression that a physical therapist is usually for post-injury/post-operative help. Would they take on a patient who is otherwise healthy?

Sure, if your money is green.

I'm seeing a physiotherapist (is that the same as a physical therapist? I am assuming it is) once a week to improve my core muscles and hamstrings. It was my neurosurgeon who sent me to him, and while I am generally very skeptical of people who want my money, I've found some improvement in my back and leg pain, and quite a bit of improvement in my balance. I would suggest looking into it.

 

[Disruptor]

Dig up a dead thread, rather than start a new one.

I injured my lower back earlier this week, very painful (for at least 36 hours), my dad suggested going to the chiropractor he'd been seeing.

So I did. Office looks professional enough, i guess. I'm not sure I'm sold on the concept. Reading the "material" in the waiting area made me uneasy. Adjustments can treat almost anything? Patient testimonals...that mention they'd been going there for years?

"Fearmongering" articles online made me suspicious. Is the field just 90% baloney...or does mainstream medicine hold a grudge against chiropractic?

Are those really my x-rays? (One criticism of the field is they x-ray too often and sometimes with too much radiation.)

I didn't care much for neck popping no matter how straight my neck isn't supposed to be.

Whose to say my injuries won't correct themselves in time, adjustments or not? (A second opinion from an MD would be great, but those cost $$$.)

I do think there's some benefits, but it still seems too "cultish" for my taste, like once you get in you've made some mental commitment to something you don't understand and that saps your money.

It's almost a moot point, I can't afford many treatments at the moment. And if I can, i really need to see a dentist above all else.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Chiropractic can offer temporary relief for some types of chronic back pain, particularly in the lower back.

Everything beyond that, though, is pretty much quackery--like the belief that chiropractic can treat various ailments that have nothing to do with the bones, muscles, and nerves in one's back.

 

[thestrangequark]

I think it's baloney. Chiropractors base their practice in a lot of pseudoscience and woo that has absolutely no basis in real medicine. The classic question being, "If it works, why do you have to keep going back?"
There is a very small percentage of chiropractors who are real physical therapists who specialize in the spine, and who base their treatments on scientific medicine, but the vast majority are no more reputable than homeopathy practitioners. The Skeptic's Guide to the Universe did an interview with a scientific chiropractor (one of their earlier podcasts, I believe) that was very interesting and informative and should be up in their archives. One of the most interesting things this chiropractor said was to never trust a chiropractor who wanted to see you for more than a month.

 

[Mr Awe]

In fairness, I will state that I do have a bias, as I consider the vast majority of Chiropracty to be quack science.

I definitely agree with this!

Mr Awe

 

[Mr Awe]

I've been going to a chiropractor for about 9 years now and I will vouch that it works. I was in a car accident in 1998 and symptoms of whiplash didnt show up for about a year and a half, which apparently isn't that uncommon.
My neck started getting worse and worse and my doctor told me to take a handful of ibuprofen several times a day, and said that I'd probably have to have spinal surgery (this was even before they did an MRI).

A coworker recommended that I try a chiropractor first. The first couple of weeks were pretty rough with 2 or 3 adjustments per week, plus massage. That later became once a week for a few years, and now I only go every couple of months and I feel great.

Oh, and if the chiropractor gives you exercises to do at home, DO THEM!

It was probably the exercises that helped you more than anything else.

Mr Awe

 

[Kirby]

^^ Perhaps if I would have done them on any sort of regular basis, then yes, they probably would have helped. However, I probably did them once every two weeks instead of every day like they were perscribed, so I doubt they helped very much.

 

[thestrangequark]

Placebo effect works wonders, though.

 

[Peacemaker]

All I know is that a few years ago, I woke up one morning and could not stand up straight. I spent the next six months bent perpendicular to the floor. There were days I could barely walk. I went to my MD, had MRI's done, physical therapists - none of them helped. I went to a chiropractor - after just one visit, I was at a 45 degree angle. In 3 weeks, I was standing upright. In 5 weeks, I had no pain whatsoever.

No, I do not go back. However, I can say that Western medicine did nothing for me. My chiropractor did.

 

[thestrangequark]

^There are two types of chiropractor, though. Mixers employ actual scientific medicine to their practice. Straights believe in magic. One is basing his practice on reality, and doesn't claim to cure things like organ failure or allergies by correcting "subluxations" that are blocking the flow of "innate intelligence." The other, is, well, rather cuckoo.

 

[Peach Wookiee]

I would recommend anyone who's gone to Palmers. My guys helped me walk again because my legs and back were fouled up together.