Duncan Chiropractic Group Newsletter

From Your Howell Michigan Area Chiropractor

Benefits of Maintenance Care

Gary Peters, D.C.

It is estimated that in the United States, the annual costs associated with the treatment of low back pain (LBP) total approximately $100 billion. High recurrence rates and chronic disability are believed to play a large role in the overall cost of back pain; studies have shown that only a fraction of low-back pain patients remain pain free and recover completely from the disabilities associated with LBP, even one year after the problem first occurred.

In The Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics study, 30 patients with chronic, nonspecific low back pain lasting at least six months, were separated into two groups. The first group received 12 treatments (three treatments per week, consisting of side-posture manipulations of the lumbar and sacroiliac joints) over a one-month period, but no treatments for the subsequent nine months. The second group also received 12 treatments over a one-month period, along with "maintenance spinal manipulation" every three weeks for the following nine months.

Results: Patients in both groups experienced significant decreases in low back pain scores after the first series of treatments. The greatest difference, however, was seen in disability scores over the duration of the study. Analysis of the data showed that in patients who received maintenance spinal manipulation, the disability scores were significantly lower after the 10-month period than before the initial phase of treatment. In the other group, however, the mean disability scores went back to their pretreatment level.

Conclusion: "This study appears to confirm previous reports showing that LBP and disability scores are reduced after spinal manipulation. It also shows the positive effects of preventive chiropractic treatment in maintaining functional capacities and reducing the number and intensity of pain episodes after an acute phase of treatment."

Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, October 2004;27(8):509-514.