The Evidence Based Chiropractor Blog

Hundreds of chiropractic marketing and research articles to help you grow.

Jeff Langmaid 7/22/14 Jeff Langmaid 7/22/14

8 Facts About Foraminal Height for Asymptomatic People- by The Evidence Based Chiropractor

Laura Dydra at Becker Spine recently wrote a great article on trends in foraminal height for healthy people. As chiropractors, this information is very important because the foraminal height directly affects the exiting nerve roots. In my opinion some of the information uncovered should be used for further research regarding the adjustment of patients who are 'asymptomatic' but may have clinical signs indicated somatic dysfunction/subluxation.

Ms. Dydra wrote, "Researchers examined subject-based three-dimensional CT lumbar models for asymptomatic subjects to measure trends in foraminal height for the healthy spine and published their results in Spine.

The research included 59 volunteers. Here are eight findings from the study:

Overall foraminal height decreased with age
Foraminal height in males decreased at all levels with age
Foraminal height in females did not decrease at all levels
Foraminal height was significantly larger in the upper lumbar levels
Foraminal height was smaller in males than females
Foraminal width decreased with age in both sexes
Foraminal widths at the lower lumbar levels were smaller than those at the upper levels
Age-related foraminal width decreased at all lumbar levels"

-The Evidence Based Chiropractor is the fastest growing chiropractic marketing group in the profession. The service, founded and run by Dr. Jeff Langmaid, is dedicated to increasing chiropractic utilization by showcasing research. Marketing to medical doctors through research is proven, cost effective, and can dramatically improve your incoming referrals. Join us. Lets grow chiropractic together

Jeff Langmaid 7/15/14 Jeff Langmaid 7/15/14

Obesity and Your Back: How Being Overweight May Influence Your Spine by The Evidence Based Chiropractor

SPINE Journal recently released a study which examined the discs heights of people who fall within the traditional BMI brackets of "normal" weight and obese. There is no doubt that when we carry additional weight; it places undue stress on the structures of our musculoskeletal system. However, this is one of the first studies to correlate our weight to actual disc heights.

They found that disc heights of the lumbar spine were in fact reduced in the obese patients when compared to the disc heights of non-obese patients. Interestingly, this held true for segments L1-L5 but not at the lumbosacral junction of L5-S1.

Clinically, they found no particular correlation or causation between the diminished disc height loss and any recent episodes of pain. It is important to remember that consistent (over) load of our vertebral motion segments may very well result in an increase in degenerative changes as time continues to march on.

Jeff Langmaid 7/3/14 Jeff Langmaid 7/3/14

Epidural Steroid Injections Performed No Better than Lidocaine Injections- by The Evidence Based Chiropractor

This large, multi center study published by the New England Journal of Medicine found that, for patients with lumbar stenosis, injections of lidocaine performed just as well as injections containing lidocaine and corticosteroids. The study was double-blinded and randomized.

“Compared to injections with local anesthetic alone, injections with glucocorticoids provided these patients with minimal or no additional benefit.” said the author of the study, Janna L. Friedly, MD.

This study may have important implications. Earlier this year we touched on a study which showed that ESI's have greatly increased the risk of lumbar vertebral fracture. Additionally, ESI's have a fairly high complication rate and their effectiveness is questionable at best when compared to other conservative care options.

Jeff Langmaid 7/3/14 Jeff Langmaid 7/3/14

The UK BEAM Study: A Landmark Paper for Spinal Manipulative Therapy- by The Evidence Based Chiropractor

In 2004, the British Medical Journal published the UK BEAM (United Kingdom Back Pain, Exercise, and Manipulation) study. This was a randomized trial to test the effectiveness of various physical treatments for back pain. The study showed that manipulation provided the greatest response to care for patients with un-resolving lower back pain; and if cost or time is an issue, manipulation alone provided a greater net benefit than exercise alone.

Manipulation/Adjustments alone had statistically significant improvement in the Roland Disability Score for the manipulation group at 3 months (1.57) and remained significant at 12 months (1.01). The exercise only group was significant at 3 months (1.36) and not at all at 12 months (.39). When examining the treatment groups, the most robust separation from the baseline Roland Disability Scores were the treatment groups that included manipulation. Additionally, you will notice that no serious advance effects were recorded.

-The Evidence Based Chiropractor is the leading DC/MD marketing and outreach group in the world. Our service is dedicated to increasing chiropractic utilization by showcasing research. Marketing to medical doctors through research is efficient, cost effective, and can dramatically improve your incoming referrals. Join us. Lets grow chiropractic together.

Jeff Langmaid 6/26/14 Jeff Langmaid 6/26/14

Maintenance Adjustments for Prevention Recommended by SPINE Journal- by The Evidence Based Chiropractor

A potentially earth-shattering study relating to the practice of chiropractic was released last year and you may not have heard about it...until now. SPINE Journal emphatically stated that maintenance (at a frequency of 2x month) adjustments to the lumbar spine may prevent future episodes of lumbar spine pain.

Pain (VAS Score) and disability (Oswestry) scores were significantly reduced with the group receiving maintenance treatment. In their own words, "we suggest that maintained SM is beneficial to patients with chronic nonspecific LBP, particularly those who gain improvement after initial intensive manipulation to maintain the improved post-treatment pain and disability levels."

When powerful research such as this is produced for prescription medications, the pharm reps are banging down the door of every medical practitioner in the country. However, aside from our promotion at The Evidence Based Chiropractor, I have not seen a single chiropractic organization mount a campaign which promotes this research to other medical providers.

As chiropractors, we have an abundance of high-quality research which needs to be promoted and not left dormant! This library of research will continue to build and it will be our task to make sure that others are aware of the value of our care.

We have assisted hundreds of chiropractors (just like you) around the globe build referral relationships with other physicians. Dr. Langmaid literally wrote the book on interdisciplinary referrals ("Marketing Chiropractic to Medical Doctors" is available worldwide on iBooks). We are the unrivaled leaders in interdisciplinary outreach and marketing for a reason.

Join us by the end of the month to receive zip code exclusivity and a FREE 30 minute implementation call!

The study- http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21245790