We see a number of people with back pain in our Downtown St. Louis, MO office, and Dr. Holland has been able to help many of them get relief with chiropractic. At the same time, recovering from back problems doesn't necessarily mean having to decide between chiropractic care and medical treatment, as many individuals utilize both types of care with great outcomes.
In a study published by the medical journal Spine investigators1 looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who reported both acute discomfort and restricted function due to back pain. Some of the test subjects received treatment via standard medical therapy, while the remainder were given chiropractic adjustments along with standard medical care, as the authors wanted to see which patients fared better.
Researchers observed that the patients who received standard medical care in combination with chiropractic care scored "significantly better" than the patients who received medical care alone; 73% reported positive benefits compared to just 17% of the medical treatment only group who indicated the same amount of improvement. This was true regarding both pain and level of function at the two- and four-week marks.
Thus, integrating these two forms of treatment can greatly benefit you--the patient--offering benefits when compared to medical care alone. However, while chiropractic and medicine can work alongside each other, chiropractic offers some distinct advantages over medical treatment.
Although it might seem as if each approach plays a 50-50 role, there is one major benefit that chiropractic care has over medical care and that is in patient satisfaction. In fact, a piece of research from UCLA2 that was printed in the American Journal of Public Health reports that, on average, chiropractic patients are generally more satisfied with their recovery than people undergoing medical care.
According to the experts, the main factors that patients preferred over medical treatment were "self-care advice and explanation of treatment." This isn't unexpected, as chiropractors frequently spend much more time consulting with their patients as to how they can better their health on their own, as well as outlining more thoroughly what to expect from chiropractic.
Without a doubt, the strategies associated with chiropractic are quite different than those offered with medical care, but a great deal of the distinction is the fact that chiropractic is a natural approach to health and wellness. Instead of focusing on simply relieving the symptoms, chiropractic means searching for the primary cause of your pain, which often means greater improvement as you are addressing the problem at its source.
Additionally, while medication is sometimes helpful for treating certain conditions, many health issues respond well to a natural approach like chiropractic care. This means fewer negative responses to prescriptions and lasting recovery.
You don't have to suffer from back pain or other health problems. Give our Downtown St. Louis, MO clinic a call today at (314) 588-9100. We'll do our best to help you get and stay free from back pain.
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We have a long-standing track record or helping people get out of pain with chiropractic care. Whether you were injured last week, or have been suffering from chronic pain for years - It might only take one visit to our office in Downtown Saint Louis, MO to get you back on the path to everyday health.
