The Goal of Chiropractic
Our #1 goal is to find and correct interference in your nervous system. The reason this is so important is nerve interference keeps your body from functioning the way it was designed to function. Nerve interference leads to symptoms such as pain, tingling, headaches, digestive issues, hormone imbalances, and a whole host of other issues.
What Causes Nerve Interference?
Nerve interference is typically caused by spinal subluxations. A subluxation is a vertebrae that has stopped moving normally or has become misaligned. The lack of normal motion or misalignment compromises the normal function of the spinal nerves and therefore can compromise whatever the spinal nerves control. For example, if there is a subluxation affecting the nerve controlling your stomach you will end up with stomach trouble. Subluxations also cause problems in the muscles, discs, and joints of the spine and can lead to compromises to the spinal cord as well.
How Does Chiropractic Correct Nerve Interference?
Dr. Betz conducts thorough examinations of his patients to determine where the spinal subluxations are that are causing nerve interference. He uses chiropractic adjustments to correct the subluxations [hyperlink techniques to Our Chiropractic Techniques tab] that are very gentle and effective and set his patients on the path to true healing.
Is Chiropractic Safe?
Chiropractic is not only safe but has been proven effective for all kinds of health problems. Our patients, from just a few hours old to 90, have experienced wonderful results with chiropractic care. Many of those patients have shared their success stories on our Reviews page. Chiropractors have delivered millions upon millions of adjustments to satisfied patients since its inception in 1895 when D. D. Palmer restored the hearing of his patient with an adjustment.
Facts About Chiropractic
- There are 77,000 chiropractors in the United States who are required to pass a series of four national board exams1 and be state licensed.2
- It is estimated that chiropractors treat more than 35 million Americans (adults and children) annually.3
- Chiropractors are educated in nationally accredited, four-year doctoral graduate school programs4 through a curriculum that includes a minimum of 4,200 hours of classroom, laboratory and clinical internship,5 with the average DC program equivalent in classroom hours to allopathic (MD) and osteopathic (DO) medical schools.6
- In 2017, the American College of Physicians released updated low back pain guidelines that recommend first using non-drug treatments, such as spinal manipulation, for acute and chronic low back pain.7
- Similarly, a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2017 supports the use of spinal manipulative therapy as a first line treatment for acute low back pain.8
- 95% of past-year chiropractic users say it’s effective, and 97% of past-year chiropractic users are likely to see a chiropractor if they have neck/back pain.3
- In a consumer survey, chiropractic outperformed all other back pain treatments, including prescription medication, deep-tissue massage, yoga, pilates, and over-the-counter medication therapies.9
- Chiropractors are the highest rated healthcare practitioner for low-back pain treatments above physical therapists (PTs), specialist physician/MD (i.e., neurosurgeons, neurologists, orthopedic surgeons), and primary care physician/MD (i.e., family or internal medicine).10
- With prescription pain drug abuse now classified as an epidemic11 in the United States and the number of spinal fusions soaring 500% over the last decade12 the essential services provided by chiropractors represent a primary care approach for the prevention, diagnosis and conservative management of back pain and spinal disorders that can often enable patients to reduce or avoid the need for these riskier treatments.
- Chiropractors’ collaborative, whole person-centered approach reflects the changing realities of health care delivery and fits well into Accountable Care Organization (ACO) and patient-centered, medical home (PCMH) models bringing greater clinical efficiency, patient satisfaction and cost savings.13
- In 2015, the Joint Commission, the organization that accredits more than 20,000 health care systems in the U.S. (including every major hospital), recognized the value of non-drug approaches by adding chiropractic to its pain management standard.10
Call today to schedule your appointment for chiropractic care!
References
[1] National Board of Chiropractic Examiners (NBCE) www. NBCE.org. Accessed December 2013.
[2] Federation of Chiropractic Licensing Boards (FCLB) www. FCLB.org Accessed December 2013.
[3] Gallup-Palmer College of Chiropractic Annual Report: Americans’ Perceptions of Chiropractic. Gallup and Palmer College of Chiropractic. http://bit.ly/2jrr7TG
[4] Council on Chiropractic Education (CCE) www.cce-usa.org 2013.
[5] Meeker, DC, MPH; Scott Haldeman, DC, PhD, MD; Chiropractic: A Profession at the Crossroads of Mainstream and Alternative Medicine. 2002; 136(3): 216-227. http://annals.org/article.aspx? articleid = 474085
[6] Coulter, Adams, Coggan, Wilkes, Gonyea. A Comparative Study of Chiropractic and Medical Education. Alternative Therapy Health Medicine. 1998; 4: 64-75.
[7] Qaseem, A., Wilt, T. J., McLean, R. M., Forciea, M. A., & for the Clinical Guidelines Committee of the American College of Physicians. (2017). Noninvasive Treatments for Acute, Subacute, and Chronic Low Back Pain: A Clinical Practice Guideline From the American College of Physicians. Annals of Internal Medicine, 166(7), 514. https://doi.org/10.7326/M16-2367
[8] Paige, N. M., Miake-Lye, I. M., Booth, M. S., Beroes, J. M., Mardian, A. S., Dougherty, P., … Shekelle, P. G. (2017). Association of Spinal Manipulative Therapy With Clinical Benefit and Harm for Acute Low Back Pain: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. JAMA, 317(14), 1451–1460. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2017.3086
[9] Consumer Reports Health Ratings Center. Back-Pain Treatments. ConsumerReports.org; July 2011.
[10] Consumer Reports Health Ratings Center. Relief for your aching back: What worked for our readers. ConsumerReports.org; March 2013.
[11] Unintentional Drug Poisoning in the United States. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2010. Prescription Drug Abuse. White House Office on National Drug Policy. Accessed November 2013.
[12] Whoriskey, Keating. Boom in spinal fusions questioned. Washington Post. Page 1. October 28, 2013; Rise in spinal fusion surgeries driven partly by financial incentives. Washington Post. November 13, 2013.
[13] Accountable Care Organizations Optimize Outcomes, Cost Savings and Patient Satisfaction with Chiropractic Care. Foundation for Chiropractic Progress. May 2013.