Chiropractic vs MDs
 

It’s not an “either OR” both are important, admittedly Chiropractic is a smaller part of our healthcare but should be respected. Fatalities by both professions have an enormous gap (26 to 250,000 (google), I would choose the conservative option of chiropractic with some diagnosis . The best part of chiropractic are the millions of folks that have been helped EVEN when their personal bias interfered with this choice.

I have very mixed feelings about chiro’s. I think a good one can conservatively, and temporarily, help alleviate back and hip pain with proper adjustments. On the other hand, don’t ever let one of them give you a neck adjustment. One of my best friends, who is extremely fit and active, recently had a stroke which was caused by a damaged carotid artery in his neck. The neurosurgeons who treated him asked if he had seen a chiropractor and gotten a neck adjustment. Although they will never know if that is definitely what damaged his artery, they said they have seen the correlation between the two more often than a coincidence would indicate. Every neurologist my friend talked to said they would never get a neck adjustment.

My rule of thumb concerning all vendors is that if they insist on putting you on a subscription plan, they're a crook. This applies to doctors, HVAC techs, computer software vendors, car salesmen, and anyone else who tries to sell you over-priced insurance disguised as a "maintenance plan". The one exception is virus software, which is a different scam, called a "protection racket" -- if you don't pay them, they'll give your computer a virus. So you have no choice but to pay them. But be very careful. We have a good friend who lost her entire life savings when she signed up for Norton and then responded to an email claiming to be from Norton, which said she'd overpaid, so please call the nice lady who will get take your bank information and "get you your refund". Poof -- money gone. Strange how a scammer just happened to know the exact moment when she signed up with the largest virus scanning company in the world. Pure coincidence, no doubt.

But I digress..

I tried a Chiropractor years ago from my sore back, which, as a software developer, resulted from my sitting in an office chair all day. He popped my back for $100, and it felt a little better. Then he insisted that I start coming back every week for an "adjustment", and I realized it was a scam. After that, I discovered that if I walked everyday at lunch my back didn't hurt, anyway. Much cheaper insurance.

Chiropractors are just like their friends in aroma therapy, acupuncture and crystal healing.

Untrue and ill-informed. Like so many....

Chiropractors all work differently. I only see solo practice, most of them will take their time with you. Not a rack & crack & out the door multiple Dr practices. Between my massage therapy & Chiropractic they keep me going.
I drove over a 1,000 miles a week for work for 25 yrs. & was in a motorcycle wreck back in the late 90's. So, I know they are a help. I still use both! The Dr. I saw after my accident sent me to both.
You, nonbelievers, just don't know. Just like a regular Dr. sometimes you have to shop until you find the right one.

As I understand it, a chiropractor will charge you thousands of dollars to stretch your back and increase the spacing between the vertebrae to relieve sciatica pain. But, as soon as you start walking around, your back will revert back to it's original position and the sciatica pain will return. Is that not correct?

I'm going to pop some popcorn and wait for Golfing Eagles to weigh in.

I’m actually going to pass. No point in wasting my time on a discussion of quacks and snake oil salesmen. Besides I’ll just get into arguments with true believers, this time I’ll let them enjoy their mythology

Kind of apples & oranges imho. Of course a good GP doctor is essential. But a good chiropractor can be very good for many back issues. I speak from some experience.

You went to an MD first. You were diagnosed properly and treated. Chiropractors cannot do this. If you go to a chiropractor to alleviate undiagnosed pain, he/she may cause more damage to your body. First, by not recognizing you need to seek medical attention. Second, by giving you a false belief that you are in good hands. You may avoid medical treatment for days or weeks. This time lapse may cause a larger problem than your initial pain. Last, the chiropractor may actually cause more damage. For example: A back adjustment is probably not a good idea if you have an injured spine. JMO: SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION FIRST

After my rear end auto accident in 94, I've been seeing a chiropractor both on the West Coast and after relocating to the Villages for adjustments on an as needed basis. In all cases my chiropractor has also been a licensed MD which is not the case with many chiropractors. Both of the offices I've gone to have been very informative on stretching routines I can do on my own to avoid unnecessary office visits. They have shown a genuine interest in helping me improve my quality of life.

We’re mixed in our house.

She has a regular chiropractor appointment on the schedule.

I subscribe to the theory of “happy wife = happy life” and just pay the bill.

Interesting that the US Military uses Chiropractors.
Chiropractic Health Care Program | TRICARE

MDs who specialize in pain management discuss with patients additional therapies including chiropractic care on a routine basis, accupuncture, massage therapy and physical therapy.

I first visited a chiropractor several times 26 years ago.He tried to adjust my back by poking several vertebrae with a pencil eraser. A few days later a neurosurgeon did a lumbar laminectomy on me because a couple leg muscles were becoming paralyzed, and that did the trick.

In the past 17 years I’ve visited chiropractors several times for spinal pain, neck or lower back, and got significant relief in a couple minutes and full relief with a follow-up visit. I was grateful. Different chiropractors used different techniques, but they worked. I dated a woman for years who is now 61 but competes with her horses, running and jumping. She sees a chiropractor as needed, and that’s probably every month or two. They keep her going, competing (and winning) against twenty year olds.

So, I believe in using chiropractors, but ONLY for spine related pain like stiff necks and backs. Some sciatica they can help with, but not always. I would NEVER go to a chiropractor for something like a cold or a lack of energy, and I would NEVER buy any medications from one, and I would NEVER sign a contract for regular visits. Emergencies only.

Exactly
 

Chiropractors can miss more severe diagnoses, so it is very important to see a physician FIRST. I know if two instances where people went to a chiropractor first, and their cancer diagnoses were missed.

ONLY 2??? I know of dozens

I was never much of a believer in Chiropractic. If truth be told my opinion, admittedly from a less educated standpoint, pretty much lined up with the "quacks and snake oil salesmen" opinion of Golfing Eagles.

Until I went to one.

Some years back I was a pretty serious tennis player; came down with a bad shoulder and like an idiot I tried to play through it. Didn't do it any good...a lot of pain and tennis (or exercise of any kind) was out of the question. Doc recommended cortisone and an extended period of rest and P.T. (six weeks? Can't recall exactly). Told him I'd think about it. There was a Chiropractor a few blocks from my office so "nothing ventured, nothing gained". I paid him a visit. Bottom line: first and second week = 2 visits each, which included the mandatory neck "adjustment" followed up by a session (half hour) hooked up to some kind of electrical apparatus where I could dial the charge up or down to just below "pain".

Pain was gone by the end of the first week. I was back on the court by the end of the second week.

Even a blind squirrel finds a nut once in a while 😂😂😂

Not correct. I was referred to Chiropractic by the VA. I am happy they did because my United Health Care provided only one answer to my intermittent nerve issues which make my right hand unusable - carpal tunnel operation! I knew, and even the medical Dr. acknowledged my evaluation, that the pain in my hand was brought on by activities that had nothing to do with carpal tunnel constriction. I went to VA and they agreed - besides VA will not cover carpal tunnel operations!! Explain that. I am making progress with Chiropractic adjustments where a carpal tunnel operation would most likely have provided no help. I am going to Alignlife, and if you do, you will learn a lot about what Chiropractors do and why. Their education program at Alignlife is impressive with an upfront required education session and total evaluation including xrays of your entire system, and alignment measurements/charts which are completely discussed with you by a Chiropractor before you agree to treatment. As with other new things, it is wise to "know before you go".

Interesting! I sometimes get the impression that traditional medicine and its practitioners are pretty turf-oriented, dismissing out--of-hand anything that goes against gospel as they see it.

Many chiropractors use spinal decompression machines to treat sciatica pain. However, they require you to come back as many as 20 times or more to repeat the treatment. If the sciatic pain is caused by a bulging disc, this treatment will almost never be a permanent fix for the pain. You need surgery to remove the part of the disc that is pressing on the sciatic nerve.

Chiropractors can help with some problems and not with others. I had dull pain in my right shoulder for years and decided to try a Chiropractor. He determined the issue was not in my shoulder but in my spine. He took X-rays and said it looked like I had whiplash. I had never been in an accident, but I later found out that working at a computer for long hours can cause the same issue. He was not sure he could help me, but over the course of a couple of months, neck adjustments shifted my alignment to a more normal curve. At that point, my pain vanished. It was an objective result of specific treatment.

My Primary Care Physician diagnosed me with Type 2 Diabetes around age 55. My A1C had risen as high as 7.7 for a year, but with diet changes, the number dropped to 5.6. My autoimmune condition remained, but I was told that eventually I would need to go on insulin injections. Some years later, I attended a presentation by a holistic doctor who was focused on determining the root cause of health problems. I worked with him and determined my root cause was secondary leaky gut syndrome. After treatment of the root cause, the autoimmune condition was healed, and I no longer have Diabetes. Why did the PCP not know this? The standard medical system is based solely on pharmaceutical drugs. There is no financial incentive or formal training beyond that. The use of Alternative Health Care techniques can provide relief for specific problems, but you need to be your own health care advocate and not limit yourself to canned solutions.

Let me rephrase that to read : The FACTS of medical science. This does not include Voo-doo and its related scams.

I was going to stay out of this but the public needs to know the truth. First of all, holistic "doctors" love to diagnose "leaky gut", mainly because it can't be proved wrong. Here's a citation:

"Leaky gut syndrome is a controversial condition characterized by increased intestinal permeability, allowing toxins and bacteria to enter the bloodstream, but it is not currently recognized as a distinct medical diagnosis." This of course is a red flag for patients and a giant "pass GO, collect $200" for the quacks.

Then, just how does any provider cure an autoimmune disease? I'd love to know. You can treat it, even control it, but unless you know a way to wipe out specifically the B-memory lymphocytes that are producing the harmful antibody, there is no "cure", so beware of any statement that claims that.

Likewise, how does one "cure" diabetes? As a diabetic, I'd love to know that too. It can be treated and controlled, but again, unless you know how to replace the gene that leads to type II DM, there is no cure, and beware statements and "doctors" that claim that.

In the ED we would often see the results of a Chiropractic manipulation. Quacks.

I beg to differ. 40 years with lower back issues and the only cure is my local Chiropractor. Initially referred by my doctor.

I'm glad you are getting some sort of relief. But I do have to point out that after 40 years, chiropractic has hardly "cured" your condition. How many visits have you paid for in those 40 years?????

And I've had to pronounce a few. Not to mention a few quadriplegics and 2 strokes from dissection of the vertebral arteries after "manipulation".

You missed the point that commenter was making....and that is the point!

There are many mentally-entrenched people, in all professions, whose minds are simply closed. And some take such a strong stance on something that they box themselves in (their pride and ego) from later admitting they hadn't considered the whole picture or possibilities. No, they just keep digging.

Thankfully, most of the Docs like that aren't practicing anymore, in my experience.

Indeed!

And how many years ago was bleeding someone for various ailments, mercury as a treatment for syphilis, and phrenology as a predictor of a person's character and mental abilities all accepted as "FACTS of medical science"?

Absolutely true, but at those times, the "chiropractors" were selling snake oil.

A dissection is what caused my good friend’s stroke. The doctors in the Neurological Trauma department suspect a neck manipulation caused it. Because of the location of the dissection, the Neurosurgeon elected to treat it via angiogram. The dissection was so severe it took two stents to open up the damaged artery. The before and after images of blood flow to his brain were absolutely amazing. The doctors told him he is one of the very few they have treated for this that ever got to go home. They had to give him medication to temporarily increase his blood pressure, to force some blood through the dissection, before the surgery. I am extremely happy to report that he appears to be on his way to a full recovery. We now call him the “stent double”.

I have seen several chiropractors over the years. The first time was when I was at college and someone dove on me from the 3 meter diving board. I went for a while for treatments to realign my back and they had to be followed up by exercises to maintain the adjustment. When the exercises strengthened me, I didn’t need to go anymore.

This year I had an old knee injury flare up. I tried all kinds of therapies, even with injections the knee still hurt and was unstable. OA was the “official” diagnosis. My sports doctor recommended physiotherapy and I went to a chiropractor for that. I started twice a week, he does no adjustments of any kind, he coaches me through exercises for 1 hour each time. He supervises how I do them. He knows precisely which muscle to work and most importantly, he calibrates to my age, sex, and level of fitness. Finally, I can sleep without waking up a night because I have moved my knee. I can walk properly, and jog, play pickleball etc - I feel 10 years younger! In just 2 months. (I did work those exercises religiously.)

But, if I had anything wrong with me, I would never start with going to a chiropractor. Nothing replaces a medical doctor. Nothing.

Some of those blind squirrels in my husbands clinic were MDs with BAD BACKS, btw, he had the largest single Dr clinic in the state of NC, he knew the LIMITS of Chiropractic :boxing2:! Trouble with painting a profession with a broad-brush would apply to ALL professions which would apply to MDs ALSO, need I discuss the “hiccups” in medicine!!!!
When painting with broad-brush, some could say that all golfers are over-weight but that isn’t true, just some!

Dissection is a tear within an artery. If this person had a dissection it would be repaired by tiny sutures, smaller than a hair, some not visible without loops.

Angioplasty would open a blocked artery, and stents (permanent or dissolved) placed to keep open the artery in question. If damage is severe, Sometimes a full metal jacket is the only recourse.

Artery dissection tear would bleed within the walls. Immediate procedure needed. A complete dissection, through all wall. Dead guy no longer walking

The blood work does not lie. The autoimmune indicator was positive before treatment, and after treatment, it was negative. If the root cause of an autoimmune condition is healed, then is that not a cure? Type 1 Diabetes is a genetic problem. Type 2 Diabetes is not.

You are correct, according to my friends neuro surgeon, surgical repair of the dissection is typically the best option over an angioplasty/stenting procedure. However, his dissection was located behind the top part of his right ear, covered with bone. Because of the location, he determined angioplasty would be a better option. The artery dissection tear, and associated bleeding, created a bubble in the artery that left only a small opening for blood to pass through, and surgery was scheduled ASAP. He is already scheduled for a second angioplasty this fall, to inspect the stented dissection and determine if anything else is necessary.

Well, congratulations, you went 0 for 2.

The "autoimmune indicator" is not the root cause of the disease, it is just a laboratory marker and they tend to be "flakey" at best. I suggest googling forbidden clone and autoimmune disease to understand the causes. But again, they are not "curable" with our current technology

The cause of type I diabetes is unknown. It is probably autoimmune with antibodies directed against Islet of Langerhans cells; it may have a genetic component. Type II diabetes has a strong genetic component, usually unmasked by poor diet and obesity so as to induce down regulation of target cell insulin receptors