Alternative Medicine Forum - Chiropractor Or Massage Therapist

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Q: Chiropractor Or Massage Therapist

asked by: brettesman on January 12th, 2006

New User

Hi all, I have an important situation/question that I am looking for a bit of insight on. It is not for me but for my girlfriend. Me and her parents both have different opinions on the matter. I am biased towards massage therapy because my mom is a therapist, and her parents are biased towards chiropractors.

Now I will tell you what is wrong with my girlfriend before you tell me what her best choice would be. First off she has degenerative disk disease, and she is 21 years old by the way. This last memorial day she was climbing a tree at my grandparents and fell 30 ft. Out of it and cracked a vertabrae in her back, t7 to be exact. She also got a concussion from the fall. She healed up as best as possible having already had back problems. Recently she started getting dizzy spells when she turns her head...Up, down, left, or right. Not everytime, but it happens quite a bit. She has been to the chiropractor within the last week and had some sort of muscle inflamation test thing that he did with his computer. It showed that her shoulder and neck area were "inflamed" and her lower back, which I believe is due to the ddd. My mother has offered to work on her twice a week, 1 day doing massage work and 1 day doing (spelling) cranial sacral. Knowing all this...What would you recommend? Massage, or chiropractic work?

Replies(12)

Tamadrummer

replied on January 12th, 2006

Active User, very eHealthy

Take her to and orthopedic surgeon and allow them to take some pics of her back and see if she is operative or in need of medicines and pt.

There is no way on earth I would allow some chiro touch my back if it had not been fixed by someone that went to school in a real university and interned in the field of specialty that was needed to fix me.

Massage or chiro can do serious harm if the vertabrae is still fractured. She is likly in need of kyphoplasty and possibly other serious surgery. She doesnt need to fooled around with by people that learned what they know in very limeted amounts and in a practice that has little to no recognition for fixing problems.

brettesman

replied on January 12th, 2006

New User

Well I guess I forgot to mention that she did go to the hospital...The ambulance came and all that. She saw a doctor and basically healed on her own. They sent her home the next day with pain meds and that was basically it. But they said that it would heal on its own.

Tamadrummer

replied on January 12th, 2006

Active User, very eHealthy

I would still get her to a real spine doctor if she still has pain from that accident because she is obviously not healing correctly.

The doc may prescribe massage therapy as well as pt and meds but just treating her without seeing inside, just seems too risky.

Check out,

Spineuniverse.Com to find a reputable ortho/neuro surgeon in your area. She is too young to risk more injury.

ADenverDC

replied on January 19th, 2006

New User

As a dc I would agree that she needs to have xrays taken, not the surface emg. A chiropractor can help as long as the bones are not broken, but this needs to be addressed before she is treated.

As most people are aware medicine is good for catastrophic cases, ie broken bones, etc., and when the time comes for surgery then obviously medicine is the best thing going, particularly in the west. With that said I take alot of offense at this other poster that said that we have no evidence for fixing anything. Either you are completely uneducated and have not read any research in spine or by the united states agency for health care policy and research, or you are just another bigoted self-righteous drug pusher.

Which is it? Your degree does not intimidate me or the public. Have some respect. The majority of md's do not know anything about musculoskeletal injuries, if you want the proof I would be happy to post it.

Good luck to your girlfriend. Find a good chiropractor, and dont listen to people who have only bad things to say about something that they do not know anything about.

style44

replied on February 1st, 2006

New User

Well said adenverdc! I total believe in both massage therapsit and chiropractors. If you find a good chiropractor or massage therapist, they will be able to tell if they can help her. This is alternative medicine board is it not?

gimbeliyah

replied on February 9th, 2006

New User

Did You Ever Consider Magnets And Supplements

Magnetic and infared technology is a great alternative and non evasive inexpensive road to recovery. Millions have seen very profound effects with this technology and science backs it up. The body is made up of magnetic energy and where the magnetism is not alligned or balanced there in lies the pain. While the magnetic technolgy balances the body giving the body its natural ability to heal itself and the infrared technolgy works on a cellular level to work out the root of the chronic inflammation and pain. Please pm me as I would love to help your situation. I have been using magnetic and infrared tech on myself for a year now and have seen great results.

Tamadrummer

replied on February 9th, 2006

Active User, very eHealthy

If magnets are good for healing, then why are mri machines not used for treatment?

They are about the most powerful magnets that the human body is exposed to.

gimbeliyah

replied on February 9th, 2006

New User

Mri

Mri's are used to detect the magnetic alignment in the body ..It essentially is taking a picture of the magnetism on one's body where the pain is located. The success of magnets on the body was originally conceived through mri's. The one reason this is not publicized is because 98% of the world lives in the sickcare industry and only cure sickness and illness rather than prevent it. Why would the healthcare industry chop of their profits by explaining to the world that the best method of healing is through prevention and alternative medicine and therapy...They wouldn't . 3 answers money money and money.

Tamadrummer

replied on February 9th, 2006

Active User, very eHealthy

I bet you have nothing to do with nikken do you?

I would absolutly love to see substaniated evidence that even 2% of medical science believes that mri can be used to cure.

Establisted, reputable medical research. Not a link back to the nikken website and a nikken miracle story.

I have hadd no less then 15 mri's and not one has made my bad back feel better. I can no longer go in an mri because I have a cobalt chrome artificial disc in my back but if there is a cure in mri's I missed it.

Maybe I have to believe in it for it to work?

gimbeliyah

replied on February 9th, 2006

New User

Placebo Effect

Maybe so? Tell that to the repaired tendons in my hand !!!!!

Tamadrummer

replied on February 10th, 2006

Active User, very eHealthy

Re: Placebo Effect

gimbeliyah wrote:

maybe so? Tell that to the repaired tendons in my hand !!!!!

maybe you had a healing but can you substantiate the healing of these tendons with magnets?

Again, I have had so many mri's for my back and right knee that if magnets were useful for anything other than sticking stuff to the fridge and making power, there would be a better market for them other than pyramid scheme franchise business for the stuff.

Hristos

replied on January 19th, 2007

New User

tamadrummer wrote:

take her to and orthopedic surgeon and allow them to take some pics of her back and see if she is operative or in need of medicines and pt.

There is no way on earth I would allow some chiro touch my back if it had not been fixed by someone that went to school in a real university and interned in the field of specialty that was needed to fix me.

Massage or chiro can do serious harm if the vertabrae is still fractured. She is likly in need of kyphoplasty and possibly other serious surgery. She doesnt need to fooled around with by people that learned what they know in very limeted amounts and in a practice that has little to no recognition for fixing problems.

hello everyone,

i happened to stumble upon this forum while doing some research and I was offended at the comment that was made about chiropractic physicians (dcs, doctors of chiropractic) not having adequate schooling or not being able to treat or manage a patient with a fractured vertebra at l5. I am currently a fourth year chiropractic intern at an accredited university and assure you that I have been through rigorous schooling to be able to get into chiropractic school and especially while in chiropractic school. I started my schooling in 1997 and graduated from uconn with a b.S. In biology; I then continued my schooling with pre-medical (or) pre-chiropractic requirements to even be able to apply for school. I will be graduating in december of 2007 and that would make it 10 years of schooling since I entered. I am not done though because if I pursue a specialty I will be in school for another 2 ½ to 3 years depending on that specialty. So let me assure you that dcs are qualified if not overqualified to handle neuromusculoskeletal problems more so then regular primary care mds (more info at the end).

The fracture was diagnosed at a hospital and then the patient was merely tossed aside and was told that this fracture will heal on itself. While it is true that the body has its own capabilities to heal itself, there should be some intervention of treatment while this is going on and the patient is in pain. Taking pain killers everyday is not a way to live and it also has consequences attached to it. Some of these pain killers are habit forming and who wants to be addicted to pain killers anyways. These nsaids (non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs) are also bad for your stomach as it has been clearly shown in multiple clinical trials that they cause gastritis or ulcers altogether. This is not to say that nsaids might be warranted sometimes but that should not be the only way to treat someone.

That is where chiropractors come into the picture and we treat or co-treat neuromusculoskeletal ailments by natural means that don’t cause any side effects. Talking in general terms and not particularly about the above case with the fractured vertebra; we adjust the spine or extremities, perform physiotherapies, consult on lifestyle issues such as stress, and give nutritional consults about diet or general health.
Here is a description from the aca (american chiropractic association) website for those of you in the forums that don’t know exactly what chiropractors do.
What is chiropractic?
Chiropractic is a health care profession that focuses on disorders of the musculoskeletal system and the nervous system, and the effects of these disorders on general health. Chiropractic care is used most often to treat neuromusculoskeletal complaints, including but not limited to back pain, neck pain, pain in the joints of the arms or legs, and headaches.
Doctors of chiropractic – often referred to as chiropractors or chiropractic physicians – practice a drug-free, hands-on approach to health care that includes patient examination, diagnosis and treatment. Chiropractors have broad diagnostic skills and are also trained to recommend therapeutic and rehabilitative exercises, as well as to provide nutritional, dietary and lifestyle counseling.

The most common therapeutic procedure performed by doctors of chiropractic is known as “spinal manipulation,” also called “chiropractic adjustment.” the purpose of manipulation is to restore joint mobility by manually applying a controlled force into joints that have become hypomobile – or restricted in their movement – as a result of a tissue injury. Tissue injury can be caused by a single traumatic event, such as improper lifting of a heavy object, or through repetitive stresses, such as sitting in an awkward position with poor spinal posture for an extended period of time. In either case, injured tissues undergo physical and chemical changes that can cause inflammation, pain, and diminished function for the sufferer. Manipulation, or adjustment of the affected joint and tissues, restores mobility, thereby alleviating pain and muscle tightness, and allowing tissues to heal.

Chiropractic adjustment rarely causes discomfort. However, patients may sometimes experience mild soreness or aching following treatment (as with some forms of exercise) that usually resolves within 12 to 48 hours.

In many cases, such as lower back pain, chiropractic care may be the primary method of treatment. When other medical conditions exist, chiropractic care may complement or support medical treatment by relieving the musculoskeletal aspects associated with the condition.
Doctors of chiropractic may assess patients through clinical examination, laboratory testing, diagnostic imaging and other diagnostic interventions to determine when chiropractic treatment is appropriate or when it is not appropriate. Chiropractors will readily refer patients to the appropriate health care provider when chiropractic care is not suitable for the patient’s condition, or the condition warrants co-management in conjunction with other members of the health care team.

Lastly, I would like to post a comparison of the average curriculum of a chiropractic school (www.Cce-usa.Org, www.Cceintl.Org ) versus an average curriculum of medical school as published by the ama (american medical association) in 2000, in the first 2 years of schooling in basic sciences and pre-clinical studies. For more true and valid information in general go to the aca website at www.Amerchiro.Org

chiropractic hours subjects medical hours
366.4 anatomy/embryology 184.4
120.0 biochemistry 108.4
197 microbiology/public health/biostatistics 155.3
105.9 cell biology/histology 130.7
312.8 physical diagnosis/clinical medicine 200.5
141.4 neuroscience 114.0
561.2 physiology/pathology 542.3
66.7 nutrition 21.5
29.4 pharmacology 99.0
1,900.8 total hours 1,556.3

so the lesson for the day for everyone including myself is to keep an open mind about all the health care options that are out there and to go to the doctor that you think is best! If the problem is outside their scope of practice or they need to co-manage with some other profession, then a referral is on order.

Thank you

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