| Have you been to a practitioner besides | | | | primarily chiropractors - experienced |
| your family physician? Whether | | | | fewer hospitalizations, underwent fewer |
| chiropractic care, acupuncture, yoga or | | | | surgeries and used considerably fewer |
| homeopathy, Complementary and | | | | pharmaceuticals than HMO patients who |
| Alternative Medicine (CAM) has become | | | | received traditional medical care." |
| increasingly common in the United | | | | A large national survey of all studies |
| States, and 72% of adults use some form | | | | on treatments for back pain, the most |
| of CAM therapies according to the US | | | | common cause of disability in working |
| National Centers for Disease Control and | | | | Americans, lead by William Meeker, DC, |
| US National Center for Health | | | | PhD, and Marc Micozzi, MD, PhD, found |
| Statistics. | | | | that chiropractic was more effective at |
| A recent cover story in The New York | | | | reducing pain and restoring function, |
| Times Magazine highlighted how chronic | | | | and was less costly and dangerous than |
| pain tends to be under treated because | | | | medical and surgical management. |
| doctors worry about over prescribing | | | | Another study, in the Journal of |
| medications, and being liable for | | | | Rehabilitation, Research & Development |
| malpractice or even criminal penalties. | | | | examined the effectiveness of a wide |
| Many doctors fear entering the field of | | | | range of complementary and alternative |
| pain management at all. Many patients | | | | medicines in the treatment of chronic |
| are also concerned about becoming | | | | pain. This encompassing study examined |
| dependant on medication or about the | | | | clinical trials and previous studies |
| invasiveness and dangers of surgery and | | | | done on the therapies. |
| anesthesia. CAM therapies, which are | | | | Acupuncture is an effective treatment |
| able to treat pain and help manage | | | | for chemotherapy related pain, dental |
| diseases without medication or surgery, | | | | pain, low back pain, and probably |
| are rapidly growing services as people | | | | premenstrual syndrome pain. They found |
| search out better, safer approaches. | | | | massage therapy effective for lower back |
| So how effective are Complementary and | | | | pain and shoulder pain, but found less |
| Alternative Medicine therapies? | | | | evidence for its treating fibromyalgia, |
| One recent study published in the | | | | neck pain, headache, and carpel tunnel |
| Journal of Manipulative and | | | | syndrome. Yoga in turn has been found to |
| Physiological Therapeutics tracked data | | | | very effective for carpal tunnel |
| from a unique organization, the | | | | syndrome and many forms of arthritis. |
| Independent Physicians Association (IPA) | | | | For some therapies like reiki, |
| where chiropractors serve as | | | | homeopathy, and therapeutic touch |
| first-contact, primary care physicians. | | | | ("laying on hands"), there are few |
| This study found patients treated by | | | | clinical trials done, making it |
| these practitioners reported lower costs | | | | difficult to prove effectiveness. |
| and higher satisfaction rates than those | | | | Still, for the many who routinely seek |
| treated by conventional medical doctors. | | | | out alternative and complementary |
| One of the co-authors of the study James | | | | treatments, it has less to do with |
| Winterstein DC, said that they found | | | | clinical trials than with their own |
| that, "patients visiting CAM-orientated | | | | positive experience. |
| primary care physicians (PCP) - | | | | |