Quick Answer: See a chiropractor before a surgeon!
That’s right, a new study published in the Journal Spine comes to this conclusion. This new research noted the surgery rates within 3 years of having a work-related back injury. In a sample of 1,885 injured workers 174, or 9.2%, had back surgery within 3 years. 42.7% of those injured-workers who saw a surgeon first had surgery, in contrast to 1.5% of the workers who saw a chiropractor first. WOW! You might be thinking that the people who saw the surgeon first must have had more significant injury compared to those who went to the chiropractor; the author’s addressed this issue also. The difference rate of surgery did account for the severity of the condition, meaning this was an apple-to-apple study. Besides the economic cost, think about the potential long term consequences and quality of life of those people who had spinal surgery. ( Spine- Abstract )
This information becomes even more valuable because back pain is a leading cause of Years Lived with Disability (YLDs). As people are living longer globally and the world’s health burdens have shifted to chronic diseases such as musculoskeletal disorders. One study published in Lancet in December 2012, identifies low back pain as one of the major contributors to disability worldwide. In every region of the world studied, low back pain was the leading or second leading cause of YLDs. Who wants to be physically limited by pain, especially if there is a solution? ( Lancet – Abstract )
Multiple published studies demonstrate the effectiveness of chiropractic care both in relieving pain and suffering without the use of drugs and surgery and the cost-savings compared to other available treatments. ( ACA Research Summaries )
Most of our patients want to live productive, pain-free lives as they age. Including chiropractic treatment as part of your preventive health strategies to maintaining a pain-free active lifestyle just makes sense. When was t)he last time you had your spine checked?