In our Burton office, we see a large number of patients who are troubled with back pain, and a few of these patients have been advised they might need surgery to recover. Fortunately, Dr. Elganainy has helped many people get pain relief without the need for any type of surgical procedure. The scientific research agrees with the success we see in our practice. One study published in the academic journal Spine found that seeing a chiropractor as your first move in overcoming with your back problems may literally keep you off of the operating table.
In this study, medical experts from Dartmouth analyzed statistics from about 1,900 workers from the state of Washington who first saw either an orthopedic surgeon or a chiropractor for their back pain issues. They then looked at three years' worth of follow-up medical records to ascertain whether the patients ended up having back surgery in an attempt to correct the problem.
What the researchers discovered was that 42.7% of the patients who first saw a surgeon for their back issues ended up in surgery in that 3-year time frame, whereas only 1.5% of those who first consulted with a chiropractor had the same fate. The authors wrote:
"Even after controlling for injury severity and other measures, workers with an initial visit for the injury to a surgeon had almost nine times the odds of receiving lumbar spine surgery compared to those seeing primary care providers, whereas workers whose first visit was to a chiropractor had significantly lower odds of surgery."
These are impressive results. Seeing a chiropractor significantly reduces your odds of getting back surgery, plus the chiropractic patients in this scientific study "had lower odds of chronic work disability" and they also had fewer expensive MRI tests.
Let's also take into account this important point: this study was performed by orthopedic surgeons from Dartmouth College, and published in the world's most distinguished medical publication on spinal injuries.
Any surgical procedure has risks, but a serious downside related to spinal surgery is that there is a very high rate of failure. In an important review in the European Spine Journal, researchers wrote:
"Failed back surgery is a problem that has become sufficiently widespread to even warrant its own special conferences, with recent reviews reporting failure rates ranging from 5 to 50%."
"It is extremely difficult to identify unequivocal predictor factors that can be used to accurately predict the outcome of surgery."
As a chiropractor, Dr. Elganainy is convinced that surgery should be the absolute last resort for treating back pain. Chiropractic care works to restore your spine to its normal function--without the need of risky surgery or drugs--and many studies have confirmed the usefulness of chiropractic for back pain.
If you live in Burton and you need relief for your back pain, give our office a call today at (810) 715-7746 for a consultation or an appointment. We'll help get you back on the road to a pain-free life!
Studies
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