When anyone is deciding whether to go and see a Chiropractor, Doctor or any other therapist, we are all looking for a treatment that will effectively alleviate whatever symptoms you may have. However, what also crosses a patient’s mind is, “Is the treatment they are going to offer me safe?”. Not only should this be something that patients consider, but it is the first thing that any therapist should be thinking. The safety of any form of treatment should be the top priority for any practitioner. This is to ensure that the patient doesn’t leave the clinic in more pain or at risk of developing serious side effects.
Chiropractic is considered to be an extremely safe way of treating a whole host of conditions (listed in this blog post). The techniques we use are gentle and specific to a targeted area of the body. Many people think about the popping sound of an adjustment and assume that it will be painful because of the noise it makes. The vast majority of adjustments that I perform are completely pain-free and usually feel quite nice. Occasionally there can be localised muscle soreness afterwards as the muscles tighten up for a short period, however, this is rare and usually at a very low level of discomfort anyway.
The most important thing to consider as a chiropractor is what is the most suitable treatment for the patient in front of me. For instance, if I have a patient with osteoporosis, then I will change the way that I approach their treatment in order to reduce the pressure on their bones. There are many different conditions where certain treatments should not be carried out. It is therefore important that, as chiropractors, we are well trained in diagnosis and able to identify these conditions. This means that we can put together a suitable treatment plan to make their experience at our clinic as safe and effective as possible.
An example of this might be that if a GP prescribes a patient with the wrong medication, depending on the patient and the medication in question, this could cause serious side effects. It is practitioner error that should be minimised rather than stigmatising the medication itself that has been wrongly prescribed. The same applies for Chiropractic, Physiotherapy and Osteopathy. If a full history and examination has been undertaken and a clear diagnosis reached, this should naturally lead to a safe and effective treatment plan. The quality of medical and chiropractic training over the last 50 years has improved significantly to ensure that we, as therapists, are making the right decisions and are as safe as possible.
If I see that a patient isn’t improving at the rate that I would expect, or indeed perhaps getting worse, it is important that we take swift action to refer the patient to their GP for more investigations. If you have been receiving repeat treatment from a therapist without improvement, then this should be questioned in order to get you to the right place or therapist to optimise your recovery.
There have been reports in the past of chiropractic treatment carrying the risk of having a stroke. Thankfully, there have been numerous studies in the last few years that have completely debunked this and proven Chiropractic to be a safe and effective treatment.
If you are unsure whether Chiropractic treatment would be safe for you or whether we can help with your problem, please feel free to get in touch and we can have a chat about it.
Dr Alexander White MChiro DC
