Tuesday, March 22, 2011

LBP Reoccurance and Chiropractic for Ear Pain

WORK-RELATED LBP CHIROPRACTIC PATIENTS LESS LIKELY TO SUFFER REOCCURANCE, COMPARED WITH MEDICAL PATIENTS
People with work-related low-back pain (LBP) are less likely to suffer disability recurrence if they are cared for by a chiropractor, compared with a physical therapist or physician. These findings are from a study published in the Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine.
Researchers used workers’ compensation data to follow 894 patients with work-related LBP for one year.
The study concludes that “in work-related nonspecific LBP, the use of health maintenance care provided by physical therapist or physician services was associated with a higher disability recurrence than in chiropractic services or no treatment.”
JOEM March 14, 2011;Epub.
CHIROPRACTIC FOR EAR PAIN
A small pilot study published in the Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association finds that chiropractic care may cure ear pain.
The study’s authors write: “Four patients with ear pain were referred for chiropractic consult. They were all treated with a combination of manual therapy and exercise with resolution of their ear symptoms.”
They conclude that “the mechanism of idiopathic ear pain that may be amenable to manual therapy is not fully known. Further research is needed to investigate the etiology of this disorder and to determine whether manual therapy and exercise are viable options in some patients with idiopathic ear pain. In the meantime, it may be advantageous for otolaryngologists to seek input from physicians skilled in assessment and treatment of the musculoskeletal system in cases ear pain for which an otolarygologic etiology cannot be found.”
JCCA – March 2011;55:40-6.