Changes in Quality of Life in 7 Older Adult Patients Receiving Activator Methods Chiropractic Technique

Chiropractic Care and Quality of Life Among Office Workers With Nonspecific Pain: A Cross-Sectional Study

Objective

The aim of this study was to evaluate the quality of life by a self-administered World Health Organization Quality of Life short version survey (WHOQoL-BREF) among office workers with nonspecific pain receiving chiropractic care in Istanbul, Turkey.

Methods

This cross-sectional study included 77 office workers (age interval, 18-65) with nonspecific neck, thoracic, back and/or extremity pain who underwent chiropractic care. Two weeks later, the quality of life was evaluated by a self-administered WHOQoL-BREF. The Numeric Pain Scale to evaluate the perceived pain was administered to all of the participants in the beginning and at the end of the study. Group-level changes on WHOQoL-BREF total score and subdimensions were compared according to descriptive data of office workers. The significance level was set at P ≤ .05.

Results

WHOQoL-BREF scale scores after chiropractic care (mean ± standard deviation) were 71.21% ± 7.91% (total score), 81.49% ± 14.43% (general health), 80.38% ± 10.49% (physical health), 73.16% ± 11.68% (psychological), 70.41% ± 12.43% (social), and 65.58% ± 10.91% (environment). Numeric Pain Scale scores decreased in a statistically significant way when compared with baseline (P ≤ .05). The descriptive statistical analysis of WHOQoL-BREF dimensions revealed that women had significantly higher scores than men, the 18-to-35 age group had higher scores compared with the 50-to-65 age group, and those married had significantly higher scores than those who were not married (P ≤ .05).

Conclusion

The findings of our study suggest that chiropractic care had positive effects on the quality of life of office workers.

The Effects of 4 Weeks of Chiropractic Spinal Adjustments on Motor Function in People with Stroke: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Chiropractic spinal adjustments have been shown to result in short-term increases in muscle strength in chronic stroke patients, however, the effect of longer-term chiropractic spinal adjustments on people with chronic stroke is unknown. This exploratory study assessed whether 4 weeks of chiropractic spinal adjustments, combined with physical therapy (chiro + PT), had a greater impact than sham chiropractic with physical therapy (sham + PT) did on motor function (Fugl Meyer Assessment, FMA) in 63 subacute or chronic stroke patients. Secondary outcomes included health-related quality of life and other measures of functional mobility and disability. Outcomes were assessed at baseline, 4 weeks (post-intervention), and 8 weeks (follow-up). Data were analyzed using linear mixed-effects models or generalized linear mixed models. A post-hoc responder analysis was performed to investigate the clinical significance of findings. At 4 weeks, there was a larger effect of chiro + PT, compared with sham + PT, on the FMA (difference = 6.1, p = 0.04). The responder analysis suggested the improvements in motor function seen following chiropractic spinal adjustments may have been clinically significant. There was also a robust improvement in both groups in most measures from baseline to the 4- and 8-week assessments, but between-group differences were no longer significant at the 8-week assessment. Four weeks of chiro + PT resulted in statistically significant improvements in motor function, compared with sham + PT, in people with subacute or chronic stroke. These improvements appear to be clinically important. Further trials, involving larger group sizes and longer follow-up and intervention periods, are required to corroborate these findings and further investigate the impacts of chiropractic spinal adjustments on motor function in post-stroke survivors. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT03849794.