EASING THE BURDEN OF LOW BACK PAIN
With low back pain decreasing the quality of life for so many service members, Samueli Institute funded a research study with the Palmer Center for Chiropractic Research to learn what works and to put good practices into use.
The research team set out to answer key questions vital in determining the true impact of chiropractic services.
IS IT EFFECTIVE?
2013 Study Demonstrates Significant Improvement in Low Back Pain for Active Duty Military Patients Receiving Chiropractic Care
Evaluating claims in health care requires a streamlined, systematic and valid process for assessing the safety and effectiveness of these claims.
This pragmatic, patient-centered, two-arm randomized controlled trial pilot study was conducted from 2008 to 2009 at William Beaumont Army Medical Center, Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas.
The study found that patients with acute low back pain receiving a combination of chiropractic manipulative therapy and standard medical care experienced a statistically and clinically significant reduction in their back pain and improved physical functioning when compared to those receiving standard medical care alone.
73% OF PATIENTS IN THE STANDARD MEDICAL CARE PLUS CHIROPRACTIC MANIPULATIVE THERAPY GROUP RATED THEIR "GLOBAL IMPROVEMENT AS PAIN COMPLETELY GONE, MUCH BETTER OR MODERATELY BETTER," COMPARED TO 17% IN THE STANDARD MEDICAL CARE GROUP.
EVALUATE, LEARN, IMPLEMENT
To help the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) maximize the quality of their chiropractic services, Samueli Institute completed an observational comparative case study to support improvements in the expansion of chiropractic care and the introduction of other new services.
Key lessons learned will allow the VA to deploy their resources efficiently to support improvements in the expansion of chiropractic care.