Connecticut Family Chiropractic - The CFC Scoop

Volume 1 Issue 4 December 2003

Welcome to our office's Chiropractic newsletter.
We'd like to entertain you, inform, and inspire you.

Man With Advanced Spinal Degeneration Responds To Chiropractic Care

The October, 2003 issue of the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics reports that a 30 year-old man with spinal ankylosing spondylitis (AS) responded favorably to a course of chiropractic care. AS is a form of joint degeneration that typically leads to stiffening of the spine, changes in spinal curvature and fusion of spinal joints resulting in immobility and disability.

Diagnosed with AS at the age of 20, the 30 year-old man in this study reported that medical care in the previous 10 years had not prevented his problems from getting worse. At the time he reported for chiropractic care at a chiropractic college outpatient clinic, he reported constant low back, hip and neck pain that he rated 4 out of 10 but that his hip pain would increase to 10 out of 10 at its worst. His pain did not radiate down his legs but he did report increased pain with the approach of bad weather.

After a 12 week program of chiropractic care, the man reported an overall improvement in how he felt as well as his flexibility. The authors concluded that chiropractic care was “effective in promoting the quality of life and the flexibility of the spine in this subject with advanced AS.”

Commentary: While chiropractic care is not a cure for any disease or condition, it does increase the overall function of the body, putting it in a better position to heal itself; to the point that even long-standing degenerative conditions can show improvement. The long-term benefits of a better functioning body? An increase in the quality of life as this case points out. Continued Chiropractic Wellness Care will help ensure that good health and life expression will occur for a lifetime.

Research Doesn’t Support Many Common Medical Tests

The November 15, 2003 issue of the British Medical Journal reports that many of the commonly performed medical diagnostic tests do not have high quality evidence that proves they are effective at monitoring the diseases for which they were ordered.

Researchers at Hope Hospital in Manchester, UK, led by Dr. P.J. Sullivan reviewed the records of 90 patients to see which clinical tests were ordered in their case and why they were ordered. After identifying which tests were done, the research team performed a Medline search to see which tests were supported by evidence that they were effective.

Of the 165 tests they examined, only about half of them were supported by high-quality evidence. In fact, the researchers found that there were no studies whatsoever for such common tests as serial chest x-rays to rule out lung cancer and ESR tests to evaluate TB.

He added that “it may be that some of these tests could benefit from more scientific study.” Many tests that medicine uses these days “were devised a long time ago, based on logic and common sense. Newer tests are much more rigorously investigated before manufacturers are permitted to market them.”

Sullivan and his team concluded there is a “clear need for further high quality research into medical tests.”

Aspirin Use Linked With Pancreatic Cancer

A study presented at an October, 2003 meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research in Phoenix, Arizona says that women who take an aspirin-a-day may run a higher risk of developing pancreatic cancer.

Dr. Eva Schernhammer of Harvard Medical School and Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston led the study involving more than 88,000 nurses. Schernhammer found that female nurses who took two or more aspirin a week for 20 years or more ran a 58 percent higher risk for pancreatic cancer. Women who took 14 or more per week had an 86 percent higher risk.

The findings surprised doctors because they originally thought that the aspirin would offer protection against pancreatic cancer.

Oral Steroids No Help For Viral Wheeze In Children

In the November 1, 2003 issue of The Lancet British researchers report that in children with colds who develop a wheeze, oral steroid therapy does not have any effect.

Many doctors routinely prescribe oral steroids if children develop wheezing during the course of a cold or other upper respiratory infection.

In this study, 120 children between one and five who had previously been hospitalized because of a viral wheeze were followed. 51 of the children were given oral steroids and 69 were given a placebo. Parents were asked to keep a diary of their children’s daytime and night-time symptoms over a seven day period. At the end of the seven days, the researchers found that symptom diaries of both groups of children were similar.

According to the researchers, oral steroid therapy for viral wheezing needs to be re-evaluated “since there are no clear benefits to balance potential risks.”

Practice Increases Doctor’s Surgery Skills

The October, 2003 issue of the Journal of Vascular Surgery finds that doctors who have more experience fixing abdominal aortic aneurysms have fewer patients die from surgical complications than doctors who don’t have a lot of experience with the procedure.

In the study, aortic aneurism patients were operated on by either a vascular (who specialize in blood vessel repair), cardiac (heart) or general surgeon. The death rates were as follows: Vascular surgeon – 2.2%, Cardiac surgeon – 4%, General surgeon – 5.5%.

Commentary: Pardon us for being upset that good money was spent on idiotic research like this. How many thousands of dollars did it take to discover that doctors who do a lot of a certain procedure are better at it than those who don’t? We hope tax money didn’t fund this.

We would like to take this opportunity to wish you and your family the healthiest and happiest holiday season from everyone at Connecticut Family Chiropractic!