Search

Accreditation This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the Essential Areas and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint sponsorship of [...]

Purpose: The evolution of research awareness, capacity, and productivity within the chiropractic profession has been substantive. Historically, the terms 'research' and 'science' were used liberally in chiropractic literature to characterize [...]

Chiropractic is a large and well-established health care profession in the United States. In this overview, we briefly examine the development of chiropractic from humble and contentious beginnings to its current state at the crossroads of alternative and mainstream medicine. Chiropractic has taken on many of the attributes of an established profession, improving its educational and licensing systems and substantially increasing its market share in the past two decades. The public increasingly uses chiropractic largely for spinal pain syndromes and appears to be highly satisfied with the results. Of all the so-called alternative professions, chiropractic has made the largest inroads into private and public health care financing systems and is increasingly viewed as an effective specialty by many in the medical profession. Much of the positive evolution of chiropractic can be ascribed to a quarter century-long research effort focused on the core chiropractic procedure of spinal manipulation. This effort has helped bring spinal manipulation out of the investigational category to become one of the most studied forms of conservative treatment for spinal pain. Chiropractic theory is still controversial, but recent expansion in federal support of chiropractic research bodes well for further scientific development. The medical establishment has not yet fully accepted chiropractic as a mainstream form of care. The next decade should determine whether chiropractic maintains the trappings of an alternative health care profession or becomes fully integrated into all health care systems.

The scientific and political chiropractic communities are finally understanding that their relationship with each other is very important in realizing both their separate and combined goals for the profession. This understanding is not unique to chiropractic, and is being realized in the other health professions as well. This has largely come about because of the changing climate within health care, as patients, insurance companies, and the government question the reported efficacy and value of expensive diagnostic and treatment methods. Every specialty within medicine is asking its scientists and academicians to set their practice guidelines, standards and criteria. Chiropractic has been able to survive its first century because it offers a unique and desired service to the community. In spite of opposition, chiropractors have become a fact of life in the western world. Chiropractic research has allowed a better understanding of the workings of chiropractic practice for the profession itself, allied health professions, and the patient populations. This research has greatly influenced the acceptance of chiropractic within the scientific community, as witnessed by the fact that next year the American Back Society and the World Federation of Chiropractic have agreed to combine their annual meetings. The philosophy of chiropractic is discussed, with the premise that healing is done by the patient when given the proper assistance being agreed upon as a basic principle. This may be intuitively accepted by a segment of the public, and therefore a reason for the acceptance of chiropractic over the years. Philosophy and science can learn from each other, as scientists can attempt to give meaning to observed phenomenon, and philosophers can draw broader conclusions based on scientific discovery; there should be no conflict between the two. (Consumer Summary produced by Reliance Medical Information, Inc.)

Primary care physicians and nurse practitioners typically see many unhappy patients looking for quick relief for nonspecific low back pain. Typical management employs tincture of time, along with NSAIDs and [...]