Washington Post Article Shines Favorable Light on Chiropractic The feature story, titled “Mainstream Makes Adjustments,” appeared on the front page of the July 17 health section and includes the personal experiences of chiropractic patient and writer, Buzz McClain, who – following three unsuccessful spinal surgeries – was referred by his neurologist to ACA member Dr. Glenn Loebig.  [More]   CAM-Oriented Primary Care Providers Result in Cost Savings, High Patient Satisfaction, Study Suggests Patients visiting chiropractors and other holistically-oriented physicians who serve as primary care providers (PCPs) have lower utilization costs and higher patient satisfaction levels than patients treated by conventional medical doctors, according to a study published in the May issue of the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics that tracked data from a unique Independent Physicians Association (IPA) where chiropractors serve as first-contact, primary care physicians. [More]   Women Need Expanded Musculoskeletal Care During Pregnancy, Study Finds Despite the high prevalence of musculoskeletal pain during pregnancy, few women in underserved populations receive treatment for their low back pain, according to a February 2007 study in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics (JMPT).  Moreover, researchers found that pain in a previous pregnancy may predict a high risk for musculoskeletal complaints in future pregnancies. [More]

 

Low Back Pain During Pregnancy
In this study, researchers identified the sacroiliac joints of the pelvis (frequently "adjusted" by chiropractors) as being responsible for the majority of low back pain cases in pregnancy. This is due to the significant number of hormonal and biomechanical changes occurring in the pelvis during pregnancy. Researchers found 7/10 women were helped by spinal manipulation in this study.

Bery G, Hammar M, Moller-Nielsen J et al. Obstet and Gynecol, 72:71-75, 1988.

Text Book on Chiropractic & Pregnancy
According to Dr. Fallon, author and internationally recognized "chiropractic pediatrician", statistics from her office "have demonstrated that chiropractic adjustments effectively reduce the average amount of time spent in labor." Her data shows a nearly 25% reduction in the average labor times in those receiving chiropractic care versus the generally accepted average labor time - in women who had given birth in the past, there was a 33% reduction in average labor time.

Fallon J. International Chiropractic Association. 1994 - Arlington, Virginia.

Chiropractic Use Grows Among Pregnant Women
A growing number of pregnant women are turning to holistic therapies, including chiropractic. Researchers at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School pooled data on 463 women who had recently given birth.

In total, 31.3% of subjects used at least one type of complementary care during their pregnancies. Specifically, 5.2% visited a chiropractor; 2.8% had acupuncture or acupressure and 2.8% took vitamin supplements. 5.8% tried alternative techniques (biofeedback, meditation, yoga, tai chi, mental healing, imagery, Reiki, therapeutic touch or polar, dance, reflex, art and aroma therapies); 24.2% used natural therapies (teas, herbs, oils and foods used for medicinal purposes).

Ranzini A, Allen A, Lai Y   Use of complementary medicines and therapies among obstetric patients   Obstet Gynecol 2001; 97 (4 Suppl 1):   S46

Most Nurse Midwives Recommend Chiropractic
Nurse-midwives frequently refer patients to doctors of chiropractic, according to a survey of 82 certified nurse-midwives in North Carolina. Altogether, a whopping 93.9% of midwives surveyed reported that they recommended "complementary and alternative medicine" to patients during the past year. However, only 57.3% encouraged more than 10% of their patients to consider these approaches.

Overall, chiropractic was the third most popular referral, with 57.3% of midwives surveyed recommending chiropractic to their patients. In addition, midwives recommended herbal therapy (73.2%), massage therapy (67.1%), acupressure (52.4%), mind-body interventions (48.8%), aromatherapy (32.9%), homeopathy (30.5%), spiritual healing, (23.2%), acupuncture (19.5%) and bioelectric or magnetic applications (14.6%).

Allaire AD, Moos MK, Wells SR   Complementary and alternative medicine in pregnancy: a survey of North Carolina certified nurse-midwives   Obstet Gynecol 2000 (Jan);   95 (1):   19-23

 

Women Seeking Natural Care in Pregnancy
A recent study at Woman and Infants' Hospital in Rhode Island reveals that a significant number of pregnant women are using herbs and alternative therapies. Out of the 240 women involved in the study, 9.1% said that they used herbs some time during their pregnancy and 7.5% used herbs on weekly basis. The most commonly used herbs included garlic, aloe, chamomile, peppermint, ginger, Echinacea, pumpkin seeds and ginseng. Thirteen percent of the women also reported that they used chiropractors and other alternative therapies, such as aromatherapy, meditation, relaxation, yoga, acupressure, therapeutic touch, homeopathy, acupuncture and reflexology.

Gibson PS, Powrie R, Star J   Herbal and alternative medicine use during pregnancy: a cross-sectional survey   Obstet Gynecol 2001;   97 (4 Suppl 1):   S44-S45