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We see quite a few back pain patients in our Tumwater practice, and Dr. Harrell has been able to help a lot of them find relief with chiropractic. However, dealing with back pain doesn't necessarily mean having to make a choice between chiropractic care and medical therapy, as many people use both types of care with great results.

Research Confirms Chiropractic and Medical Treatment Work Well with One Another

In a report published by the medical journal Spine researchers¹ looked at a group of active-duty military personnel between the ages of 18 and 35 who claimed both acute discomfort and restricted function due to back pain. Some of the patients engaged in treatment via standard medical therapy, while the rest received chiropractic adjustments as well as regular medical care, as the authors wanted to see which group fared better.

Researchers determined that the group that received standard medical care along with chiropractic scored "significantly better" than the group that got medical care alone; 73% reported positive benefits compared to just 17 percent of the medical treatment only group who reported the same amount of improvement. This was true regarding both pain and level of function at two and four weeks.

Accordingly, integrating these two forms of care can greatly benefit you--the patient--offering advantages when compared to medical care alone. However, while chiropractic care and medicine can work together, chiropractic offers some distinct strengths over medical treatment.

Where Chiropractic Care Pulls Ahead

Although it may seem as if each method plays a 50/50 role, there is one significant benefit that chiropractic has over medical care and that is in patient satisfaction. In fact, one bit of research conducted at UCLA² that was printed in the American Journal of Public Health found that, on average, chiropractic patients are generally more satisfied with their recovery than those undergoing medical treatment.

According to the researchers, the main aspects that patients favored over medical care were "self-care advice and explanation of treatment." This isn't unexpected, as chiropractors commonly spend much more time consulting with their patients as to how they can better their health on their own, as well as discussing more thoroughly what to expect from chiropractic care.

Chiropractic Offers a Holistic Approach

Without a doubt, the strategies associated with chiropractic are very different than those offered with medical treatment, but a large amount of the distinction is the fact that chiropractic is a natural approach to health and wellness. Instead of focusing on only relieving the symptoms, chiropractic care means finding the root cause of your pain, which often translates to greater improvement as you are tackling the problem at its source.

In addition, while medication is sometimes helpful for managing certain conditions, many health issues respond well to natural forms of treatment such as chiropractic care. This means fewer negative responses to drugs and more permanent recovery.

You don't have to suffer from back pain or other health issues. Give our Tumwater clinic a call today at (360) 489-0635. We'll do our best to help you get and remain free from back pain.

References

1. Goertz CM, Long CR, Hondras MA, Petri R, Delgado R, Lawrence DJ, Owens EF, Meeker WC. Adding chiropractic manipulative therapy to standard medical care for patients with acute low back pain: results of a pragmatic randomized comparative effectiveness study. Spine 2013;38(8):627-634.
2. Hertzman-Miller RP1, Morgenstern H, Hurwitz EL, Yu F, Adams AH, Harber P, Kominski GF. Comparing the satisfaction of low back pain patients randomized to receive medical or chiropractic care: results from the UCLA low-back pain study. American Journal of Public Health 2002;92(10):1628-1633.

If you live in Tumwater and you've been in a motor vehicle accident, you need to know that you don't have to suffer from chronic injuries.

Research Proves Chiropractic Helps With Chronic Pain after an Auto Injury

We deal with lots of auto injury patients in our Tumwater office, and many of these folks are struggling with chronic pain caused by an old accident. In fact, research shows that a significant proportion of rear-end accidents can cause pain and disability even ten years after the initial trauma.

Dr. Harrell is here to help you avoid developing chronic pain by helping to restore the healthy function of your spine soon after a motor vehicle accident.

The most frequent causes of chronic problems are reduced mobility of your spine and the formation of scar tissue in your spine. The ligaments of your neck and back can easily be damaged during a crash, and chiropractic care works by minimizing inflammation and restoring normal motion.

We Can Help With Chronic Pain and Auto Injury Recovery

If you're near our Tumwater office, and you've been hurt in a car wreck, don't wait to get attention. Dr. Harrell is here for you. Give us a call today at (360) 489-0635 for an appointment or for more information.

Every year, there are millions of auto collisions in the world, and a substantial number of men and women get injured in a crash. While most crashes are "minor," chronic neck and back pain are still frequent health problems. The good news is that chiropractic care is a fantastic way to help these kinds of injuries.

We've helped many auto accident patients in our Tumwater office, and Dr. Harrell has been treating people with these types of injuries since 2009. During a collision, your body is subjected to large forces that it simply wasn't built to handle. These forces place strain and stress on your neck, shoulder, and back, and can cause damage to the ligaments that hold your neck and back together. A crash can trigger a vast array of pain symptoms.

A ligament sprain in the neck can trigger pain, swelling, and radicular pain in the arm and hand. Chiropractic care works well for these types of problems, because chiropractic focuses on restoring the healthy function and mobility of the injured tissues.

Dr. Harrell Can Help Clients Recover From an Auto Injury

Dr. Harrell, your Tumwater chiropractor, can assist by reducing inflammation in the damaged area and can help decrease the formation of scar tissue that can cause chronic pain and disability.

You don't have to suffer from auto injury pain. Learn more about how we can help you recover or call Dr. Harrell today at (360) 489-0635.

Most of us suffer from back pain at some point in our lives. Researchers estimate that nearly 1 out of 3 adults deal with some kind of regular spinal pain. Dr. Harrell and our talented staff see many back pain cases in our Tumwater office, and we've found that chiropractic care is an effective way to not only help you heal from back pain, it's also a great way to avoid future issues.

Research Shows Chiropractic Helps With Chronic Back Pain

A recent paper from the University of Utah verifies what our Tumwater patients have reported: your Tumwater chiropractor is the best first choice for an episode of back pain.

In this study, 747 participants were treated for low back pain. Each person was evaluated based on the first person they sought treatment with, whether it was a primary care physician, a chiropractor, or a physiotherapist.

What the researchers found is that the subjects who first saw a chiropractor had fewer advanced imaging tests and fewer surgical procedures.

Other papers have found the same results. A 2012 study found that chiropractic patients had the best functional recovery and pain relief for chronic back pain.

Chiropractic works by restoring the natural, pain-free function of your spine. Dr. Harrell and our team help your body heal with gentle chiropractic adjustments that don't use drugs or risky surgical procedures.

Dr. Harrell Can Help Patients Find Relief From Back Pain

If you live near our Tumwater office and would like to get out of pain, give our office a call today at (360) 489-0635 for an appointment.

Reference

Fritz JM, Kim J, Dorius J. Importance of the type of provider seen to begin health care for a new episode of low back pain: associations with future utilization and costs. Journal of Evaluation in Clinical Practice. 2015(Sep 29).

Cecchi F, et al. Predictors of functional outcome in patients with chronic low back pain undergoing back school, individual physiotherapy or spinal manipulation. European Journal of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine 2012;48:371-8.

Jaw or TMJ pain is a fairly common problem reported by many people after a car crash, and it can be hard for some doctors to find the cause of the problem. Complicating the issue, very often you won't experience TMJ symptoms until many weeks or months after the incident.

Dr. Harrell has treated many people with jaw pain after an injury, and the scientific literature explains what causes these types of problems. During a crash, the tissues in your neck are frequently stretched or torn, causing ligament, muscle, or nerve injury. This can clearly cause pain in the neck and back, but since your central nervous system is one functioning unit, inflammation of the nerves can cause issues in other parts of your body.

For instance, with radicular pain, irritation of a nerve can cause tingling or pins and needles in the arm or hand. Similarly, it can affect parts of your body above the injured tissues, like your head and jaw. Headaches after a wreck are very common because of neck injury, and the TMJ works the same way. Dr. Harrell sees this very commonly in our Tumwater office.

Research Proves Chiropractic Lessens TMJ Pain After an Auto Accident

Research shows that the source of many jaw or TMJ problems begins in the cervical spine and that treatment of the underlying neck problem can resolve the secondary headaches or jaw symptoms. The trick to dealing with these symptoms is simple: Dr. Harrell will work to restore your spinal column back to health, reducing the inflammatory reaction, treating the injured areas, and eliminating the irritation to the nerves in your spine.

Dr. Harrell has found that jaw and headache issues often resolve once we restore your spine to its healthy state.

If you live in Tumwater and you've been hurt in a car crash, Dr. Harrell can help. We've been treating auto injury patients since 2009, and we can probably help you, too. Give our office a call today at (360) 489-0635 for an appointment or consultation.

Ciancaglini R, Testa M, Radaelli G. Association of neck pain with symptoms of temporomandibular dysfunction in the general adult population. Scandinavian Journal of Rehabilitation Medicine 1999;31:17-22.

Brantingham JW, Cassa TK, Bonnefin D, Pribicevic M, Robb A, et al. Manipulative and multimodal therapy for upper extremity and temporomandibular disorders: a system review. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics 2013;36(3):143-201.

The latest statistics show that there are over 500,000 spinal surgeries annually in the US. Although sometimes it's necessary to have surgery for back pain, the fact is that if you can prevent this type of invasive procedure, you're often better off.

Dr. Harrell is here to make sure that patients in Tumwater have a natural, non-surgical option for back pain. We've helped many people recover from back pain without the need for surgery.

There are many reasons to avoid unnecessary medical procedures: Surgeries often result in a longer recovery time and complications, neither of which is a desirable scenario. Luckily, as one study has found, chiropractic adjustments may actually keep you out of the operating room completely.

Research Shows Chiropractic Care Helps Avoid Back Surgery

In this paper, 1,885 workers with back injuries were examined over a three year period. When the workers first sought treatment with a surgeon, over 42 percent wound up having back surgery. For patients who saw only a chiropractor, only 1.5 percent had surgery!

These findings suggest that chiropractic care can help you recover from back pain without surgical treatments.

If you live in the Tumwater area, Dr. Harrell can probably help you with your back pain. Give our office a call today at (360) 489-0635 for more information or an appointment.

Keeney BJ, Fulton-Kehoe D, Turner JA, et al. Early predictors of lumbar spine surgery after occupational back injury: results from a prospective study of workers in Washington State. Spine 2013;38(11):953-964.

Over 2 million people are injured each year in auto accidents in the U.S. While some people are able to improve from their injuries fairly easily, others are left to deal with chronic pain and impairment. We see many of these patients here in our Tumwater office. Luckily, Dr. Harrell is here to help you heal from your auto injury.

Research Shows Chiropractic Helps Prevent Chronic Pain After an Auto Accident

The science confirms what we see in our office: A British study was carried out on 28 individuals diagnosed with chronic whiplash syndrome. Each participant received chiropractic adjustments and 93 percent of them found relief following their adjustments, even though 43 percent of whiplash sufferers overall usually never find relief. This confirms that chiropractic care is a great way to avoid long-term pain after a crash.

It's important to note that research has also found that putting off care after a car crash can negatively affect recovery time, so getting in to see Dr. Harrell immediately is key to having a quicker recovery.

We Can Help People Find Relief From Pain After a Car Collision

Dr. Harrell has worked with many auto injury sufferers, and we're here to help you, too. Call our Tumwater office today for more information or an appointment.

References

• Association for Safe International Road Travel. Retrieved from http://asirt.org/initiatives/informing-road-users/road-safety-facts/road-crash-statistics
• Dies S & Strapp J. (1992, September). Chiropractic treatment of patients in motor vehicle accidents: a statistical analysis. The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association, 36(3), 139-145.
• Woodward M et al. (1996, November). Chiropractic treatment of chronic 'whiplash' injuries. Injury, 27(9), 643-645.

We see a good number of men and women with back pain in our Tumwater office, and Dr. Harrell finds that many cases of back pain start in the sacroiliac (SI) joint. Research shows that roughly twenty-five percent of all back pain begins in the SI joint, and now new research corroborates what we have observed in our office: chiropractic is an effective way to treat this problem.

Research Proves Chiropractic Treatment Helps Increase Movement in the SI Joint

In the study released in the Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies, 32 women with sacroiliac joint dysfunction were split into two groups and asked to engage in one of two treatment methods. one group went through a chiropractic adjustment isolated to the sacroiliac joint, and the other group received an adjustment to the sacroiliac joint and the lumbar spine.

Researchers observed greater improvements in both pain and movement immediately following treatment, two days later, and 30 days later for the group who had been given high-velocity low-amplitude manipulation to both the sacroiliac joint and the lumbar spine. This suggests that chiropractic manipulation administered in these two areas offers both short term and long term results for sacroiliac joint pain sufferers even with just one treatment round.

So, if you are having trouble with sacroiliac joint pain, or cope with back and leg pain and would like to see if your sacroiliac joint is the root, a visit to our Tumwater office may be the first and best step towards recovery. Give our office a call today at (360) 489-0635.

Kamali F, Shokri E. The effect of two manipulative therapy techniques and their outcome in patients with sacroiliac joint syndrome. Journal of Bodywork and Movement Therapies 2012;16(1):29-35.

Over 2 million people are injured every year in auto accidents in the U.S. While most people are able to recover from their injuries fairly easily, many are left to deal with chronic pain and impairment. We see many of these patients here in our Tumwater office. Thankfully, Dr. Harrell is here to help you heal from your auto injury.

Research Supports Chiropractic Helps Prevent Chronic Pain After an Auto Accident

The science confirms what we see in our office: A British study was conducted on 28 people diagnosed with chronic whiplash syndrome. Each participant received chiropractic care and 93 percent of them found relief following their adjustments, even though 43 percent of whiplash sufferers overall usually never find relief. This confirms that chiropractic is a great way to avoid long-term pain after a crash.

It's important to remember that studies have also found that putting off care after a car crash can adversely affect recovery time, so getting in to see Dr. Harrell at the earliest opportunity is key to having a quicker recovery.

We Can Help Clients Find Comfort From Pain After a Car Accident

Dr. Harrell has treated many auto injury sufferers, and we're here to help you, too. Call our Tumwater office today for more information or an appointment.

References

• Association for Safe International Road Travel. Retrieved from http://asirt.org/initiatives/informing-road-users/road-safety-facts/road-crash-statistics
• Dies S & Strapp J. (1992, September). Chiropractic treatment of patients in motor vehicle accidents: a statistical analysis. The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association, 36(3), 139-145.
• Woodward M et al. (1996, November). Chiropractic treatment of chronic 'whiplash' injuries. Injury, 27(9), 643-645.

Although some people are still uncertain about chiropractic care, even the American Medical Association (AMA) recommends that adjustments should be tried prior to surgical treatment--the one option that should be a last resort.

Dr. Harrell has seen many back pain patients in our Tumwater office who have been suffering for years and who are worried that they might need an operation for their back pain. Dr. Harrell has had great success in helping patients recover and avoid risky back surgery, and the science backs up our experience.

Research Shows Chiropractic Helps You Avoid Risky Surgery

For example, in a study conducted on about 2,000 Washington State employees who suffered from a back injury while at work, more than 40% who saw a surgeon first following their injury found themselves having back surgery within three years. That compares to just 1.5% of the people who first sought treatment with chiropractic, demonstrating that this natural approach is very effective at keeping you off the operating table.

Dr. Harrell Can Help Patients Find Comfort From Back Pain Without Surgery

There are alternatives to risky medical procedures. Chiropractic is a proven effective and safe way to improve the function of your spine, which is the root cause of back pain. Dr. Harrell has helped many patients in Tumwater recover. Give our office a call today at (360) 489-0635 for an appointment.

Reference

Goodman DM, Burke AE, Livingston. Low Back Pain. The Journal of the American Medical Association 2013;309(16);1738.

Keeney BJ, Fulton-Kehoe D, Turner JA, et al. Early predictors of lumbar spine surgery after occupational back injury: results from a prospective study of workers in Washington State. Spine 2013;38(11):953-964.