Chiropractor Dangers Will Send Chills Down Your Spine

by Jacqueline Burt May 14, 2012 at 7:47 PM

back pain I've always been skeptical about chiropractors, you know, mostly because of that persistent "chiropractors are quacks" rumor. So even though I've had some back-breaking aches in my day, I've never gone that particular pain management route. Just because I figured it wouldn't do anything to help.

Forget helping -- as it turns out, going to the chiropractor can actually HURT.

According to a recent study, most of the "randomized clinical trials" done on chiropractic treatments "failed to report any adverse effects."

Meaning, all of the randomized clinical patients who went crawling out of their chiropractor's office feeling worse than when they went in? The researchers just didn't bother mentioning those guys.

Uh, yikes!?!? That's pretty scary. But that's not even the scariest part ...

According to Professor Edzard Ernst (the dude who spearheaded this trial result-debunking effort):

"About 50% of patients seeing a chiropractor have adverse effects, which is staggering."

More to the point, the patients are staggering away from treatment ... and that's if they're lucky. "Adverse effects" can range from more pain to stroke (!?!?!), which is definitely worse than a backache.

What's the take-home lesson here? Proceed with extreme caution when it comes to your back. I've seen family and friends try everything from acupuncture to surgery to relieve their sometimes crippling back pain; some methods have worked, some have done the opposite (so far Advil and yoga are the only two things that have ever helped me, but not that much).

And it seems to me that the back is such a fragile, finicky mess of nerves and muscles and bone that pretty much any treatment carries the potential of risk.

Also, I think I just figured out the whole prescription painkiller addiction epidemic thing.

Have you ever been to a chiropractor? Did it help or make things worse?

Image via Andreanna Moyer/Flickr

Add Comment 79

Filed Under: alternative medicine, general health

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Jacqueline Burt

has written for numerous magazines, newspapers, and websites. She is easily bored and often tired, so she requires constant entertainment to keep her awake. Dance, Monkey! Dance!

Extra Sugar

Tasty Treats from Our Partners

Man Jumps Off Empire State Building & What Happens Next Is Unbelievable

Partner Headlines

Man Jumps Off Empire State Building & What Happens Next Is Unbelievable - Newser
Kendall Jenner Shares Revealing Photo - ET Online
Jennifer Aniston Strips for the Camera - Celebuzz
Proof That Kardashian Wedding Was Staged - Newser
Man Dead for 40 Minutes Shockingly Comes Back to Life - Wetpaint Moms

Featured Videos

Add Comment

Comments 79

Nonmember comment from Shelly

May 14, 2012 at 7:51 PM

Like any medical field, there are good doctors and bad doctors. Before we got pregnant, I was a Chiropractor's Assistant. I worked in a practice with 2 AWESOME Chiropractors. In all my years there, I don't remember a single person complain about worse pain or side effects that you mention. In fact, we had people come from OTHER chiropractors, because those doctors did hurt them. It's all in in who you see. I have seem awful MDs and really great ones. I couldn't believe the awful ones were still in practice. Chiropractic care, is not quackery. I have seen it change lives. Now, there are chiropractors who should NOT be in practice, and don't report when they should.

Report this comment

Nonmember comment from Nicole

May 14, 2012 at 7:57 PM

I never believed in chiropractors but after I was in an accident I tried it out. Never again. It's quakery. My dad is a doctor and doesn't respect the profession.

Report this comment

Nonmember comment from Tami

May 14, 2012 at 8:02 PM

I know a man who had a stroke that was directly linked to his going to a chiropractor. He was 30.

Report this comment

Roxygurl

May 14, 2012 at 8:08 PM

I went to a chiropractor because of severe back pain, the next day I was in such intense pain I couldn't get out of bed and it continued into the next day. Never ever again will I trust a chiropractor.

Report this comment

Freela

May 14, 2012 at 8:09 PM

I'm sure there are good and bad chiropractors. My mom somehow ended up with broken ribs after a chiropractic adjustment... that was it for her!

Report this comment

TLVitale

May 14, 2012 at 8:18 PM

I second the statement that as with any profession, there are good doctors and bad doctors. I've gone to a chiropractor for 4 years now and it changed my life. They completely helped me through crippling back pain from a compressed disc as well as two pregnancies. While my friends suffered from horrible pregnancy back pain, it was like I wasn't even pregnant. Not to mention that my daughter is almost two and has been sick and requiring antibiotics all of one time. She's never had an ear infection, which is something chiro is great at preventing and curing. I've heard of kids who were on the path to needing tubes in their ears from the recurring infections, until they started getting regularly adjusted. I had a mild ear infection clear up in a matter of hours after going in for an adjustment the day it started. I'm also sick far far less than I used to be (regular adjustments can help prevent all kinds of problems, and can help your body function better, hence the quicker recovery time and less sickness). I have nothing else in my or my daughters life to attribute all of this too. You just have to find a reputable doctor.

Report this comment

Jespren

May 14, 2012 at 8:22 PM

I think the report is meaningless, how many people walk out of a doctors office worse than when they came in? Between side effects, randomly trying 14 different drug combinations to find the right one that someone can A) tolerate and B) actually helps, and doctor-caused complications i'd bet more than 50% of standard patients walk out with 'adverse complications'. That doesn't mean doctor care is quackery or even not worth it, but it does mean you have to be careful, find a good doctor, and be a good advocate. With chiro care I think there are people who will benefit greatly from it, and people who won't. Chiro care is a lifesaver for me, who suffers from joint sublaxation and dislocations, and my primary physicians have even recommended chiro care. But for other people whose real problem is more muscular, chiro may certainly further agrevate the pain. And, of course, there are bad chiros just like there are bad docs.

Report this comment

TommyAbby

May 14, 2012 at 8:28 PM

"According to a recent study, most of the "randomized clinical trials" done on chiropractic treatments "failed to report any adverse effects."

Randomized? And who ran the study? Failed to report any adverse effects: as in they didn't report any bad /adverse effects? So what did they report? confused

Report this comment

Disney17

May 14, 2012 at 8:31 PM

I've never been, and I never will. Even though my spine has a slight curve in it and I have back pains sometimes, I will not go that route. My boyfriend has chronic back pain and he's been seeing a chiropractor since he was a baby. I think that is to blame.

Report this comment

JessLogansMommy

May 14, 2012 at 8:32 PM

I agree, there are good doctors and bad ones out there. I was at a point where i was taking advil and excedrin daily for neck pain and headaches and I would suffer awful migraines. I would take imitrex for the migraines but got some really nasty side effects. Now I'm pain free most days and when I do get a migraine, about an hour after an adjustment its gone. It was also very helpful while i was pregnant because tylenol did nothing for my headaches. My primary care encourages me to continue with the chriropractor because i've had such great results. I did discuss the stroke risk with him and he told me that you actually extend your neck just as far when you're backing up your car

Report this comment