Many traditional medical treatments used for low back pain are costly and inefficient which leads to the further budget and health care cost constraints for the US. The cost of low back pain is astounding and is a severe detriment to our health care system and our national budget. In 1998, the direct costs associated with low back pain were estimated at $26.3 billion. This cost does not include indirect costs such as lost income from work, decreased productivity, or costs associated with care of daily activities that cannot be performed.
Traditional medical treatments rely on medication to cover up the pain, physical therapy to strengthen muscles but ignore the underlying joint issue, or surgery to cut out painful tissues without prevention for future injury. This treatment model can lead to recurrent injuries or medication addiction that can cause further health issues but a feeling of helplessness for the patient.
A recent double blind study looked at effectiveness of current treatment options including the nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug diclofenac, spinal adjustments, and placebo in three separate groups. Participants reported physical disability, function, off work time, adn rescue medication usage. The results revealed the chiropractic adjustments were superior to diclofenac and placebo with faster pain relief and better function and quality of life improvements. In addition, the spinal adjustment group used 3 times less rescue medication than the diclofenac group with the number of days of usage of that rescue medication being half that of the diclofenac group.1
This study is revolutionary in the fact that the author demands the replacement of ineffective treatments with better alternatives such as chiropractic adjustments in an effort to provide better patient care and outcomes as well as reduce the costs associated with low back pain.
As a Peoria chiropractor, I have helped many patients who've failed to respond to traditional medical treatment or have had their back pain return after treatment. Here at AlignLife, I focus on finding the root cause of the problem and correcting that first, followed by recommended the proper nutrition required for optimal healing and the preventative exercises necessary to prevent the injury from recurring. I want to make sure that patients have the tools they need to get better, stay better, and live better.
If you've been dealing with back pain and haven't been seen by a chiropractor, then you need to try it now. Call 309-689-6200 to schedule a free low back pain consultation at AlignLife today.
References
1 von Heymann et al. Spinal high-velocity low amplitude manipulation in acute nonspecific low back pain: a double-blinded randomized controlled trial in comparison with diclofenac and placebo. Spine 2013 April 1; 38(7):540-8
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