What is chiropractic medicine?

Chiropractic medicine is a form of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Trained specialists, called chiropractors, diagnose, treat, and prevent conditions of various joints, such as low back pain involving the spine.¹ They use their hands and/or small instruments to apply a controlled and sudden force to a joint. The goal is to reposition parts of the body that are not in their proper place.  This improves the way the body works.

The term “chiropractic” comes from the Greek words cheir (hand) and praxis (practice). It describes a treatment done by hand.¹ Chiropractic medicine has become more popular. It was the fourth most common CAM used by adult patients in 2007.²

The practice is based on a few core concepts:¹

1. Your body has an ability to heal itself.
2. The healthy functioning of the body’s nerves, bones, joints, and muscles are closely related.
3. Chiropractic medicine helps the body to become balanced, so it can maintain ideal function.

Why is it done?

Patients seek treatment because of different types of pain such as low back pain, neck pain, and headaches.³ Chiropractic care can help treat these types of symptoms. Your primary care team may find that chiropractic medicine, with or without other treatments, can help you manage your pain.

When two bones that form a joint do not work together properly, it is called a subluxation. Subluxations can cause pain, discomfort, and decreased mobility because they often prevent the nervous system from working properly.⁴

Will chiropractic medicine help me?

Research findings on manual therapies (which includes chiropractic medicine) were reviewed in 2010.⁵ The review was updated in 2014.⁶ The reviews found that manual adjustments may be helpful for several conditions.  These include back pain, different types of headaches, neck pain, disorders of the rotator cuff (muscles and tendons in the shoulder), other joint conditions in the arms and legs, and the effects of whiplash.  Chiropractic medicine may be helpful for other conditions as well.  More high quality studies are needed to prove that it helps other conditions.

There is no doubt many patients find great relief from chiropractic adjustment. While some patients experience relief of their pain, not everyone responds as well. If your symptoms do not improve after several weeks of treatment, it is likely that chiropractic therapy is not the best option for you. You can then see your primary care clinician for additional evaluation.