Spinal Manipulation, Medication, or Home Exercise With Advice for Acute and Subacute Neck Pain
A Randomized Trial– Gert Bronfort, DC, PhD; Roni Evans, DC, MS; A V. Anderson, DC, MD; Kenneth H. Svendsen, MS; Yiscah Bracha, MS; and Richard H. Grimm, MD, MPH, PhD
From Northwestern Health Sciences University, Pain Management and Rehabilitation Center, and Berman Center for Outcomes and Clinical Research at the Minneapolis Medical Research Foundation, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Conclusion: For participants with acute and subacute neck pain, Spinal Manipulation Therapy(SMT) was more effective than medication in both the short and long term. However, a few instructional sessions of HEA resulted in similar outcomes at most time points.
Side note: New York Times Health Section: 1-3-2012: For Neck Pain, Chiropractic and Exercise Are Better Than Drugs
Abstract
Background: Mechanical neck pain is a common condition that affects an estimated 70% of persons at some point in their lives. Little research exists to guide the choice of therapy for acute and subacute neck pain.
Objective: To determine the relative efficacy of spinal manipulation therapy (SMT), medication, and home exercise with advice (HEA) for acute and subacute neck pain in both the short and long term.
Design: Randomized, controlled trial. (ClinicalTrials.gov registration number: NCT00029770)
Setting: 1 university research center and 1 pain management clinic in Minnesota.
Participants: 272 persons aged 18 to 65 years who had nonspecific neck pain for 2 to 12 weeks.
Intervention: 12 weeks of SMT, medication, or HEA.
Measurements: The primary outcome was participant-rated pain, measured at 2, 4, 8, 12, 26, and 52 weeks after randomization. Secondary measures were self-reported disability, global improvement, medication use, satisfaction, general health status (Short Form-36 Health Survey physical and mental health scales), and adverse events. Blinded evaluation of neck motion was performed at 4 and 12 weeks.
Results: For pain, SMT had a statistically significant advantage over medication after 8, 12, 26, and 52 weeks (P ≤ 0.010), and HEA was superior to medication at 26 weeks (P = 0.02). No important differences in pain were found between SMT and HEA at any time point. Results for most of the secondary outcomes were similar to those of the primary outcome.
Limitations: Participants and providers could not be blinded. No specific criteria for defining clinically important group differences were prespecified or available from the literature.
Primary Funding Source: National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
Other good articles:
Chiropractic Care Cost effective
Exercise and Chiropractic-Part of the Anti-aging Puzzle
Chiropractic Doctors-5 Things You’re Not Supposed To Know About Them
Manipulation in Improving Motion and Joint Health ~Review of Medical literature
If you are suffering from: Sports Injuries, Sprains, Strains, Car accident, Herniated Disc, Disc Bulge, Degenerative Disc Disease, Neck pain, Headaches, Low back pain, of just want to feel better and have better life performance– please call our office in Irvine, California- at 949.857.1888 or visit our website at ADJUST2IT to learn more about Functional Fitness Chiropractic, Sports massage, Myofascial Release, Corrective Exercise, Non Surgical Spinal Decompression, Class IV laser, and Functional Nutrition.
Adjust2it's Blog 
Leave a Reply