Guidelines and recommendations for everything from how to properly replace a light bulb
to appropriately decide on whether to do back surgery pervade
our daily lives. Guidelines are appreciated by people confronting
a new challenge or a new pain for the first
time. Guidelines for the care of back pain have been issued
for years, many recommending non-surgical
care including spinal manipulation as first line treatment. Just how well are
those guidelines followed by relevant healthcare providers,
by back pain patients? Hollstrom & Associates Inc found these newly
published reports interesting and thought
our Largo chiropractic patients would, too. We can all
use them to design and follow a guideline-based
treatment plan.
BACK PAIN TREATMENT GUIDELINES
Your Largo chiropractor keeps
abreast of the current guidelines to best assist you, our Largo
back pain patient. Back in 2009, the American College of Physicians added spinal manipulation to its guidelines’
recommendations of appropriate spinal pain care options.
(1) Hollstrom & Associates Inc utilizes the well-documented Cox® Technic
System of Spinal Pain Management which has a published algorithm of
decision-making for patients who have pain below the knee
and patients who have pain that does not
extend below the knee with a goal of 50% improvement in a month of care. These guidelines came out in 1996
and have been tested in clinic-based data collections through
the years. (2) Such guidelines with research support and
proper clinical application soothe
our Largo chiropractic patients!
ARE GUIDELINES BEING FOLLOWED?
We hope so! Nearly 64% of chiropractors say they use (Cox®)
flexion distraction with their spine pain patients and have the algorithm/guideline
available to them. Hollstrom & Associates Inc is one of those
chiropractors. Beyond chiropractic, broad guidelines for back
pain care are also accessible. Are they followed? A newly
completed review of chiropractic and OT/PT use among 146,087 adults
with low back pain in the past 3 months found that
chiropractic care or OT/PT care for low back pain rose after
clinical guidelines recommending their care were introduced in
2016. Between 2002 and 2018, a bit less than a third of those
adults with low back pain reported going
through chiropractic and/or PT/OT with an increase
to a third after the 2016 clinical guidelines were published.
(3) This does demonstrate that guidelines help
with treatment planning but are not always followed. In Denmark
where guidelines for low back pain care are outlined
for primary care before referral found that 33% of
patients had not undergone an adequate course of treatment
in primary care before referral. The patients were on
average 53 years old with nearly 50% of them saying
that they experienced pain for more than a
year, and 75% saying that they experienced
pain below the knee. (4) Struggles in the healthcare system to abide
by guidelines are seemingly global.
CHIROPRACTIC’S ROLE
A group of chiropractic leaders compiled
their ideas on the role of the chiropractor in his/her own
practice, with his/her own patients, within the healthcare community, and
within society for healthcare. Quite interesting! Independently,
chiropractors reported themselves as capable
and well-educated spine and musculoskeletal care experts who delivered
evidence-based care founded on the latest research,
clinical expertise, and patient values. They provided
patient-centered care that extends to cooperating with other
healthcare providers with the best interest of the patient in mind. (5) Using guidelines, chiropractors are
sure that they can assist their back pain patients with
those patient’s best interests in mind.
CONTACT Hollstrom & Associates Inc
Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. Ted Siciliano on The Back Doctors Podcast with
Dr. Michael Johnson as he describes his use
of The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management to help
a patient dealing with back pain and foot drop.
Make your Largo chiropractic
appointment today. Facing a serious bout of back
pain is certainly not equivalent to changing a light bulb for
the first time, but it’s comforting to know that there are published
guidelines to properly manage
each task!