Question 1

Who sees a chiropractor?

Accepted Answer

Almost 35 million Americans see a chiropractor each year and about 1 in 4 Americans have visited a chiropractor at some time in their life. There are many reasons that people go and see a chiropractor. Recent studies have shown that almost 50% of the chiropractic patients see a chiropractor for general wellness or disease prevention. Many people seek chiropractic care not only for specific health problems, but also to function at their best.    Symptoms are like a fire alarm and we should focus on the fire, not the fire alarm. If you are constantly taking pain medication to just mask the symptoms, it’s like deactivating the fire alarm. It’s a better option to take care of the cause of the problem right away.    At RYNK Chiropractic, we focus on finding the cause of your health problem instead of just treating the symptoms. Do you want to feel better, sleep better, have more energy, reduce stress, perform better or maintain your health and well-being? Try chiropractic care and join the millions of others who claim to get these benefits from chiropractic care.     - Rosner AL. Chiropractic Identity: A neurological, professional, and political assessment. J Chiropr Humanit. 2016;23(1):35-45. 
- de Souza R, Ebrall P. Understanding wellness in a contemporary context of chiropractic practice. Chiropr J Aust. 2008;38(1):12-16.
- Schuster TL, Dobson M, et al. Wellness lifestyles II: Modeling the dynamic of wellness, health lifestyle practices, and Network Spinal Analysis. J Altern Complement Med. 2004;10(2):357-67.
- Henderson CNR. The basis for spinal manipulation: chiropractic perspective of indications and theory. J Electromyogr Kinesiol. 2012;22(5):632-42.
- Haavik H, Murphy B. The role of spinal manipulation in addressing disordered sensorimotor integration and altered motor control. J Electromyogr Kinesiol. 2012;22(5):768-76.
- Taylor HH, Holt K, et al. Exploring the neuromodulatory effects of the vertebral subluxation and chiropractic care. Chiropr J Aust. 2010;40(1):37-44.  - Haavik H, 2021, Haavik Research, accessed 2021, https://therealitycheck.com.

Question 2

How often should you see a chiropractor?

Accepted Answer

This is a common question and most patients would like to solve their health problems in one visit. However, it is difficult to achieve a long term improvement result to your health and wellness after just one visit. One reason is that it usually takes a long time for the problem to develop and motivate patients to come and see a chiropractor and that can then take multiple chiropractic visits to correct. Multiple micro-traumas or minor problems like sitting hunched over, having bad posture, dealing with daily stress and everyday wear and tear can accumulate and all of a sudden can cause pain. It is the thousandth straw that broke the camel’s back!   Chiropractic care takes time, frequency and follow-up. Research studies suggest that seeing a chiropractor more often (e.g. 3 times a week for 4 weeks) in the early stage of chiropractic care has better results and long-term benefits to the spine and nervous system function compared to those who received fewer chiropractic care (e.g. 1 time a week for 4 weeks). This means more frequent adjustments has the biggest positive impact on your health and wellness.    At RYNK Chiropractic, your chiropractic care plan will be based on what is best for your specific health problems and status.       - Haas M, Bronfort, Evans R, et al. Dose-response and efficacy of spinal manipulation for care of cervicogenic headache: a dual-center randomized controlled trial. Spine J. 2018;18(10):1741-1754.
- Haavik H, 2021, Haavik Research, accessed 2021, http://therealitycheck.com

Question 3

What is maintenance care?

Accepted Answer

Almost 50% of chiropractic patients receive chiropractic care because they simply want to maintain their health and wellbeing. This is a form of maintenance or wellness care. The purpose of this type of care is to maintain your spine and nervous system function at their optimal level and prevent injuries or new symptoms and pain from developing.    All of life’s stressors can build up and impact the way your brain communicates with your trunk muscles. One last minor thing going wrong is all that is needed to make you suffer from pain or other symptoms, just like the thousandth straw that broke the camel’s back. The goal of maintenance care is to help take the straws off the camel’s back before a series of symptoms develop and cause health problems.    Research studies have shown that it is important to keep optimal spinal health, even if you don’t have pain or symptoms. Consider chiropractic maintenance care to feel great and function at your optimal potential.    - Adams J, Peng W, Cramer H, et al. The prevalence, patterns, and predictors of chiropractic use among US adults. Spine. 2017;42(23):1810-16.
- Leboeuf-Yde C, Hestbæk L. Maintenance care in chiropractic-what do we know? Chiropractic & Osteopathy. 2008;16:3-3. - Eklund A, Jensen I, Lohela-Karlsson M, et al. The Nordic Maintenance Care program: effectiveness of chiropractic maintenance care versus symptom-guided treatment for recurrent and persistent low back pain - a pragmatic randomized controlled trial. PLoS One. 2018;13(9):e0203029.
- Haavik H, 2021, Haavik Research, accessed 2021, http://therealitycheck.com

Question 4

Do spinal adjustments hurt?

Accepted Answer

Quite the contrary. Most patients feel instant relief even after their first adjustments.  In some cases, there are normal reactions which you may or may not experience during the course of chiropractic care. You may feel mild discomfort but this is a natural tissue response from an external stimulus (i.e. adjustment) and it usually subsides quickly. This is due, in part, to the spinal joints beginning to move within their normal range of motion once again.    Our chiropractic adjustments are gentle and provide fast and controlled thrust that is comfortable for the patient. With the Activator Method, spinal adjustments are delivered with no joint popping or twisting and the speed of the adjustment is so quick that the patient is less likely to tense and resist the treatment.     - Hurwitz EL, Morgenstern H. Adverse reactions to chiropractic care in the UCLA Neck Pain Study. JMPT. 2006;29:597-8.

Question 5

Is chiropractic care safe?

Accepted Answer

A number of studies have reported that chiropractic care is remarkably safe, effective and associated with high levels of patient satisfaction. It is as effective, if not more effective, than traditional medical management for patients with a variety of spine-related issues.    All forms of healthcare interventions are associated with some risk and on rare occasions some people may suffer from an adverse reaction after receiving chiropractic care such as feeling sore after getting adjusted. This, however, is temporary and usually goes away by itself.  According to literature reviews done by many researchers regarding chiropractic care safety, serious adverse reactions are very rare and the rough estimates for adverse events range from 1 in 20,000 to 1 in several million chiropractic visits. Compared to other types of medical care, there are as many as 1 in 3 adverse events if someone goes to the hospital. From the best systematic reviews of scientific literature on this topic, we know that being seriously hurt from chiropractic care is extremely rare.    Chiropractic care has an enviable safety record compared to most other healthcare interventions and you can rest assured that you are in safe hands.    - Rubinstein SM. Adverse events following chiropractic care for subjects with neck or low-back pain: do the benefits outweigh the risks? JMPT. 2008;31(6):461-4. - Bronfort G, Haas M, Evans RL, et al. Efficacy of spinal manipulation and mobilization for low back pain and neck pain: a systematic review and best evidence synthesis. Spine J. 2004;4(3):335-56. - Gaumer G. Factors associated with patient satisfaction with chiropractic care: survey and review of the literature. JMPT. 2006;29(6):455-62. - Gouveia LO, Castanho P, Ferreira JJ. Safety of chiropractic interventions: a systematic review. Spine. 2009;34(11):E405-13. - Makary MA, Daniel M. Medical error - the third leading cause of death in the US. Bmj. 2016;353:i2139. - Hebert JJ, Stomski NJ, French SD, et al. Serious adverse events and spinal manipulative therapy of the low back region: a systematic review of cases. JMPT. 2015;38(9):677-91. - Haavik H, 2021, Haavik Research, accessed 2021, http://therealitycheck.com

Question 6

Is chiropractic care expensive?

Accepted Answer

Research studies have shown that chiropractic care is a great cost-effective healthcare option especially for people with neck and back pain. Recently researchers reviewed 9 years of claims data from an insurance scheme in North Carolina that included about 660,000 people and over 6 million back and neck pain claims. Then, they compared the cost of each claim based on the care providers (medical doctors, physical therapists, chiropractors) and a group of patients who only received health advice without any healthcare intervention. They found in this study that patients who were seen by chiropractors cost significantly less than the patients managed by other healthcare providers. It was 2-5 times more expensive when a chiropractor was not one of the care providers. Surprisingly, claims managed by a chiropractor cost even less than the claims for patients who were given advice alone.    Chiropractic care is a very cost-effective option and costs less in the long term than medical care or physical therapy. It also helps people return to work faster at significantly lower costs.   
- Hurwitz EL, Li D, et al. Variations in patterns of utilization and charges for the care of low back pain in North Carolina, 2000 to 2009: A statewide claims' data analysis. JMPT. 2016;39(4):252-62. - Haavik H, 2021, Haavik Research, accessed 2021, http://therealitycheck.com

Question 7

What kind of education does a chiropractor receive?

Accepted Answer

Chiropractors are educated in nationally accredited, four-year doctoral graduate school programs through a curriculum that includes a minimum of 4,200 hours of classroom, laboratory and clinical internship, with the average Chiropractic (DC) program equivalent in classroom hours to Medicine (MD) and Osteopathic (DO) medical schools.    Chiropractic and medical education are similar. Chiropractic schools in the U.S. have an average program length of 4 years, with an average of 4,820 classroom and clinical hours, composing of about 30% in basic sciences and 70% in clinical sciences and internship. Medical school curricula average about 4,670 hours with a similar breakdown. Compared with medical students, chiropractic students spend more hours in anatomy and physiology but fewer in public health. Both programs have similar hours in biochemistry, microbiology and pathology. Chiropractic curricula provide relatively little instruction in pharmacology, critical care, and surgery but emphasize biomechanics, musculoskeletal function, and manual methods.    
- American Chiropractic Association. Annals of Internal Medicine. 2002;136:216-227.