Oct 18

Accessible Chiropractic Care For Back Pain: Reduced Cost, Pain, Disability

Back pain and neck pain are often painful as well as costly and oftentimes complex. Overall health care spending in the US keeps increasing: $1.4 trillion in 1996 to $3.1 trillion in 2016. It makes up 18% of the US economy as of 2020. Of the top 154 conditions paid for by insurers, low back pain and neck pain were the costliest at $134.5 billion. (#2 was musculoskeletal disorders, and #3 was diabetes care.) (1) In one study of Medicare expenditures, researchers reported that $400 to $500 million was spent each year for chiropractic spine care. They also noted that higher accessibility to chiropractic lowered the reliance on primary care services for spine pain conditions, saving money. Further, some savings for chiropractic treatment of spine pain conditions was reported for ambulatory patients that may well add up to large savings since spine pain conditions are so common in older Medicare-aged adults. (2) Ambulatory patients can get themselves to a healthcare provider, and many go to chiropractors. Chiropractors are known for their care of the spine and spine-related, musculoskeletal conditions. A new study reported that chiropractors, not surprisingly, most often chose spinal manipulation for clinical encounters involving spinal conditions and soft tissue approaches for extremity pain conditions. (3) Chiropractors are well-trained to recognize co-morbidities, conditions that spine pain patients have in addition to spine pain that are not related to the spine, too. Researchers are working on gathering data that will show just how many such conditions chiropractors see in their patients. (4) This existence of non-spine related conditions is the basis for chiropractors’ intensive diagnostic training and ability to co-manage with other medical care as needed. Your chiropractor is ready to examine, diagnose, and treat your spine-related pain no matter its complexity in a cost-effective manner!

TIP OF THE MONTH: Understand Spinal Muscle Care with Electrical Current

Care of the spinal muscles is important. This applies to young and old! For the older folks, it’s really important as loss of skeletal spinal mass – which affects lumbar lordosis, too – makes them vulnerable to chronic low back pain. (5) Fatty infiltration of the paraspinal muscles correlated greatly with a higher risk of back pain and disability in a recent study. (6) Electrical stimulation (as well as exercise and nutrition which your chiropractor also encourages!) is helpful in enhancing spinal muscle. Interferential current was reportedly better than placebo at reducing pain and disability immediately after use in chronic low back pain patients. (7) Your individualized chiropractic treatment plan may include such extra care alongside spinal manipulation. Welcome it!

Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Jay Young on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson about his use of The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management to manage back pain in a patient with degenerative disc disease.

We look forward to seeing you at your next visit!

Be well!

References for HEALTHY NEWS – October 2023

  1. Dieleman JL, Cao J, Chapin A, Chen C, Li Z, Liu A, Horst C, Kaldjian A, Matyasz T, Scott KW, Bui AL, Campbell M, Duber HC, Dunn AC, Flaxman AD, Fitzmaurice C, Naghavi M, Sadat N, Shieh P, Squires E, Yeung K, Murray CJL. US Health Care Spending by Payer and Health Condition, 1996-2016. JAMA. 2020 Mar 3;323(9):863-884. doi: 10.1001/jama.2020.0734. PMID: 32125402; PMCID: PMC7054840.
  2. Davis MA, Yakusheva O, Liu H, Tootoo J, Titler MG, Bynum JPW. Access to chiropractic care and the cost of spine conditions among older adults. Am J Manag Care. 2019 Aug 1;25(8):e230-e236. PMID: 31419099; PMCID: PMC6699757.
  3. Jenkins HJ, Downie A, Wong JJ, Young JJ, Roseen EJ, Nim CG, McNaughton D, Øveras CK, Hartvigsen J, Mior S, French SD. Patient and provider characteristics associated with therapeutic intervention selection in a chiropractic clinical encounter: a cross-sectional analysis of the COAST and O-COAST study data. Chiropr Man Therap. 2023 Sep 21;31(1):39. doi: 10.1186/s12998-023-00515-y. PMID: 37735450; PMCID: PMC10512629.
  4. Green BN, Johnson CD, Crawford C, Tavares PA, Murnaghan K, Haldeman S, Hurwitz EL, Yang H, de Luca K. Association between spinal and non-spinal health conditions reported in epidemiological studies: a scoping review protocol. BMJ Open. 2023 Oct 3;13(10):e075382. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2023-075382. PMID: 37788930.
  5. Park MW, Park SJ, Chung SG. Relationships Between Skeletal Muscle Mass, Lumbar Lordosis, and Chronic Low Back Pain in the Elderly. Neurospine. 2023 Sep;20(3):959-968. doi: 10.14245/ns.2346494.247. Epub 2023 Sep 30. PMID: 37798990.
  6. Giordan E, Drago G, Zanata R, Marton E, Verme JD. The Correlation Between Paraspinal Muscular Morphology, Spinopelvic Parameters, and Back Pain: A Comparative Cohort Study. Int J Spine Surg. 2023 Oct 6:8531. doi: 10.14444/8531. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 37802654.
  7. Rampazo ÉP, Júnior MAL, Corrêa JB, de Oliveira NTB, Santos ID, Liebano RE, Costa LOP. Effectiveness of interferential current in patients with chronic non-specific low back pain: a systematic review with meta-analysis. Braz J Phys Ther. 2023 Sep 21;27(5):100549. doi: 10.1016/j.bjpt.2023.100549. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 37801776; PMCID: PMC10562668.