General Question

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

Controversy on Chiropractic?

Asked by Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter (587points) June 1st, 2008

What is the controversy on chiropractic care? Like why do medical doctors not like it

Observing members: 0 Composing members: 0

45 Answers

Cardinal's avatar

They don’t go to a tradirtional med school and therefor have no insight on other systems in the human body other then the spine and it’s so called alighment. I think they are looked down upon by fully educated medical professional. This isn’t to say they cannot give a back pain suffer some help. They do and I’m sure many patients are better for it.

What specific controversy you are refering to?

PupnTaco's avatar

It’s pseudo-science at best, possibly dangerous.

Although believe me, a good crack of the back feels incredible.

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

@Cardinal: Actually a chiropractor must complete a minimum of 3 years (90 credits) of undergraduate study BEFORE they can apply for a chiropractic college.
After they finish a 4-year program, they will get a Doctor of Chiropractic (DC) degree. Also they must know all the bones in the body, all nerves, and muscles. Monday I will show you how much progress I have made from going to the chiropractor

shilolo's avatar

The problems stemming from chiropractic “medicine” (and I use that term loosely) is not the spinal manipulation per se. It is the training that says that all diseases stem from misalignment of the spine, and thus can be corrected by realignment. For example, in some chiropractic schools it is taught that there are no such things as infectious (contagious) diseases. In addition, there have been (I’m not sure if this is still the case), chiropractic schools that taught that manipulation of the spine could be used for tetanus, polio, and other infectious diseases. Even more shocking, modern chiropractors claim to be able to treat trigeminal neuralgia. Without getting into the specifics, trigeminal neuralgia is a painful condition of the face caused by irritation of the 5th cranial nerve. This nerve is wholly contained within the skull and never gets into the spine. How a spinal manipulation would affect the 5th cranial nerve is impossible to understand.

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

um well my chiropractor adjusts me and I’m a lot better. I’m more flexible and my spine is a LOT straighter

shilolo's avatar

Having a straight spine isn’t all that its cracked up to be…

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

Actually is is. Because having my spine straightened, actually improved my immune system. As opposed to getting sick with croup every month, I haven’t been sick for 6 months

shilolo's avatar

Sure. Want to buy the Brooklyn Bridge?

shilolo's avatar

By the way, I think you missed the joke on my response above…

Lightlyseared's avatar

isnt the spine supposed to be curved?

(any way I liked your joke shilolo)

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

no. the spine is supposed to be straight. Your body likes to be in alignment. Before I went to my chiropractor I would get croup soooo much. My chiropractor said I was probably born with a curved spine making my lungs party blocked off causing the croup

shilolo's avatar

Your chiropractor said WHAT!??? Croup, or tracheobronchitis (in medical terms) is caused by the inflammation due to a viral infection, usually parainfluenza but sometimes RSV (respiratory syncytial virus). More importantly, it is inflammation of the trachea, larynx and vocal cords, not the lungs! Note in this anatomical diagram what the relationship of the structures are to the lungs.

Another point is that your spine in fact is curved normally, both in the neck (the cervical region) and in the lower back (the lumbar region). The term for this is lordosis. In addition, neither people with truly excessive lordosis nor those with side-to-side curvature (scoliosis) display increased susceptibility to pneumonia, which is what your genius chiropractor was trying to scare you about.

Your story is precisely why I (and so many other doctors) deride chiropractors. Mainly, and to put it into lay terms, because they are full of shit!

[NOTE: I don’t normally like to cite wikipedia, but I wanted the citations to avoid excessive medical jargon.]

shilolo's avatar

Of course, another issue is why you (believe you) have croup at your age. Typically, this is a problem of infants and toddlers, and rarely afflicts older people such as yourself.

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

maybe because my mom had to call 911 when I was a baby and they said that is was croup. but hey it’s only medics like they know anything right?

Also, have you ever been to a chiropractor? do you know their philosophy, what they study, anything?

shilolo's avatar

Croup as a baby is “appropriate”. In fact, my son had croup at the age of 1. Having croup as a teenager is very unusual. I’m an infectious disease doctor, I know. I’d put my knowledge up vs theirs any day!

scamp's avatar

I’ve seen a few chiroprators over the years for my back (6 herniated discs) and I have been one of the lucky ones because I don’t have any horror stories to share. but i did have one who was too aggresive when adjusting my neck, and he caused more pain than I originally had, so I quit seeing him. In my case, I feel like I would not be able to walk if I hadn’t found a good chiropractor early on. He taught me how to move in a way that protects my back from further injury, and he educated me on ‘good back mechanics”. I would never allow a chioroprator to treat any of my internal ailments, because I don’t buy into the whole..“everything is connected through your spine myth.” That seems to me like a bunch of bunk. I don’t see how adjusting my spine could cure me of something like a kidney infection or other ailment.

shilolo's avatar

@Scamp. Of the things that chiropractors do, the only thing that has passed rigorous evaluation is the treatment of lower back pain. Here is another analysis from the Mayo Clinic. Everything else is pure hocus-pocus.

scamp's avatar

Thanks for the links shi. I agree with what you say. Even tho I have been fortunate enough to get relief when seeing a chiroprator, I am very careful in what I would allow one to do to me. Some of them seem to be real salespeople who try to rope you into long term treatment plans. When I come across one of them, I head for the hills! The reason why I see a chiropractor when I have increased pain or other symptoms is because when I see my primary, she just writes a script for percocet and sends me on my way. Since this is a long term thing (over 25 years), I am not fond of taking narcotics. And this really doesn’t do much to help me, so I prefer to get an adjustment when needed. Luckily, I haven’t needed one for 5 years, and I credit that to the chiropractor who taught me how to take good care of my back all those years ago. One day I may have a laminectomy that was reccomended, but not until I can’t stand the pain anymore. I have seen what happens from too much surgery and the resulting scar tissue, so I am not anxious to go that route either. Luckily, I am one of those people with a high tolerance for pain, so I can wait a little longer.

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

@scamp: It all depends on the chiropractor. Mine is amazingly great but not all chiropractors are.

@Shilolo: Actually, a doctor (not my chiropractor) diagnosed me with what she called “big kid croup”

shilolo's avatar

Glad you saw a real doctor for your “croup”. Even if this is true (a diagnosis I am still skeptical of), it still doesn’t change the fact that your chiropractor told you that your croup was precipitated by a curved spine. If you read my answer regarding the pathophysiology and anatomy of croup, you’d understand better my dismay.

scamp's avatar

@Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter What depends on the chiropractor? I don’t understand what you meant.

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

Well first I went to a “real” doctor and a ent, then my mom’s personal trainer said I should go to a chiropractor because all the coughing is bad on the neck (I was coughing a TON). So we went and he said that is probably why I got croup when I was a baby and now I haven’t gotten it sense I started seeing him

@scamp: All Chiropractors have a different skill level. Mine is very skilled, but there are some that aren’t as skilled as him.

shilolo's avatar

I see. Your mom’s personal trainer (who is highly medically trained) recommended a chiropractor because you were coughing (and your neck hurt???). This chiropractor then adjusted your neck and back and then proclaimed that “you got croup as a baby due to a curved neck/back?” Is this accurate?
If so, I stand 100% behind my initial assertion. He’s full of shit.

Most likely, you haven’t gotten “croup” again because either your recent illness wasn’t croup or the seasons changed and the viruses circulating in the subsequent 6 months didn’t give you a cough.

Here’s another example. I get in a car accident and my back hurts. I go see the chiropractor who adjusts my back and alleviates my pain. More importantly, he cured my predilection for getting into car accidents since the following 6 months have been car accident free! He’s a miracle worker!

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

@shilolo: what is your deal honestly? I don’t judge what you do.

scamp's avatar

I agree with shi. Maybe this chiropractor should see a proctologist!! How can he even hazzard a guess at what happend when Mrs was a baby?

@Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter You do know that shi is a doctor, right?

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

that’s why i told him that I don’t judge him on what he does. Also, do you even know shilolo? he could be pertending to be a doctor and really get his “facts” of the internet

scamp's avatar

I’ve never had any reason to doubt him. He has always been very helpful and considerate in all of his answers here, and I appreciate his help.

shilolo's avatar

What is my deal? Your specific question was (not that this is a question, semantically, but whose splitting hairs) Controversy on Chiropractic. Everything I have answered has to do with your question. In my mind, there is no controversy. Chiropractors are good at alleviating low back pain. That’s it. When someone (a chiropractor) attempts to convince you that an ailment that is actually an infection is caused by a misaligned neck, I get alarmed! This is for your own best interest. Some day, perhaps, you’ll see. I truly hope that your “fixation” with this chiropractor doesn’t lead to a real medical problem.

If you really think I can answer your questions by researching facts on the internet and portraying myself as a doctor, then so be it. I have absolutely nothing to prove to you. In fact, I have tried on several occasions to answer your questions. No more. Bye.

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

he didn’t even say that it is an infection. did you see that in my typing anywhere? no. you also haven’t really answered my question at all. you have just been slamming my chiropractor. and honestly (no offense), i don’t even like your answers. there i said it. almost all of them are hurtful and rude. so bye to you too

scamp's avatar

You did ask what medical doctors thought about chiropractic in your question. He answered. Maybe you should have specified that you only wanted to hear from doctors who agree with you.

Also, quoting shi here:

Croup, or tracheobronchitis (in medical terms) is caused by the inflammation due to a viral infection, usually parainfluenza but sometimes RSV (respiratory syncytial virus). More importantly, it is inflammation of the trachea, larynx and vocal cords, not the lungs! Note in this anatomical diagram what the relationship of the structures are to the lungs.

You got some free medical information from him. I think you should thank him for it, not stir drama.

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

one I’m not stirring up drama. and I can get free medical advice off the internet. now I am not going to talk to you because this is a waste of my time. goodbye

scamp's avatar

Umm yeah.. it’s been real…..

shilolo's avatar

Lets see:
1. Cardinal says “they are looked down upon by medical doctors”
2. PupnTaco says “its pseudoscience at best.”
3. I said “its a problem with their training”.
4. I added, croup is not caused by a curved neck and that neck/back curvature is normal.
5. I also told scamp that they can help with low back pain.

The rest of my comments were in responses to you. As scamp said, just because the answers don’t jive with your preconceived notions doesn’t mean you didn’t get appropriate answers to your questions. I know you are a teenager, and therefor know everything, but I’m fairly convinced that (maybe, possibly, just this once), you don’t.

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

Fine if you want to treat me like a teenager then I’ll act like one. I do to you what I do to my parents. If I had a door I would slam it in your face…to say the least. and ignore you

shilolo's avatar

Oh, no, what will I do with myself now?

Don’t slam it too hard. You might break your fingers in the door! Oh, wait, the chiropractor will fix that right up by realigning your neck.

scamp's avatar

Talk to me shi. I still love ya!!

PupnTaco's avatar

LOL at this.

gooch's avatar

I have never been because MY science suggest it does not work. I personally know orthopedic surgons who say the bulk of the customers they get have been to the chriopractor who screwed them up.

Mrs_Dr_Frank_N_Furter's avatar

Just to let you all know, I’m done with that project and I got 104 out of 100. But I didn’t use anything that you lot said

scamp's avatar

I’m not crying about it.

ngbbandi's avatar

Chriopractors believe healing is ADIO – Above Down Inside Out. we believe our bodies heal the way God wanted them to and the way he made them to. You would know that if you actually educated yoruself. Mabye a visit to the chiropractors office would help you learn more on the sbuluxations that people don’t “BELIEVE” in.

there is nothing that they are trying to make you believe, it is fact. your nerves run trhough the body, but not without passing through your spine. healing is from ADIO, the power that made your body, heals the body. our innate inteligence is what takes care of the healing. call it innate, call it God, it’s fact. take an A&P class and they talk about the innate that heals your body. they don’t know how specific it works, but it’s there. that’s the thing, dr’s don’t know everything. not even chiropractors, about our bodies. there’s a lot to learn. obviously, God is the only one that knows all, and even the little boy that lives, breathes and MOVES without the part of the brain that controls movement, has stunned the world – medical or not. But Chiropractors have not been stunned, why? bc they KNOW innate is the ONLY one that lives within us that would allow that little boy to live and move without that.

HOW, you ask, does a Chiropractor can help with various diseases and other internal conditions when they aren’t “medical” doctors? No, chiro’s arent’ medical doctors. they neither claim to be nor want to be medical doctors. the whole point of a chiropractic adjustment is to remove the subluxation that was there from the time you are in the womb. how much space is in the womb? little. this is where it begins. you don’t think your spine is misaligned by the position you are in for the 9 months in a small space? not to mention that when you are born, the dr’s try to pull you out if you are taking too long, or if you’re stuck. you don’t think the pull on the upper cervical vertebrae can cause misalignment?

and our bodies ARE FULLY CONNECTED. You adjust the neck, your feet move. that is why you are checked at your feet or your hands after being adjusted in the neck. and for being a disease whaterver the person claimed to be, you would think you would have learned more about how our bodies work. a body KNOWS how to fight off diseases, it’s the medical dr’s that convince us otherwise. they tell us we must lower the fever, well, fever is good for your body to burn off the diseases. of course, there is cancer and other kinds of diseases that may have few cures but the body , believe it or not, does know how to handle that.

how many people would have avoided even getting cancer had they been adjusted and not given so many drugs that ocunteract what our bodies do naturally? a lot. i’m prettey sure you all know that your cells die and your body creates new cells? yes, it does. and why not start your body off without any interference when your new cells are created? how nice it would be to not have to take medications or any other medical interference and just let our bodies do what they know to do. yes, medical doctors and doctors of chiropractic can coexist, but one has to respect the body.

our bodies are connected, not only by our bones, but our nerves. every single nerve travels through our spinal cord, which is protected by the spine – the vertebrae. if your vertebrae are out of alignment, that means that there may be pressure put on the nerve leaving the specific vertebrae. in the croup guy’s case, even though croup is rare in older peopel, it is still possible that he can get it bc vertebrae C6 is misaligned. I bet his croup went away within a day or two, just from his adjustment. that cervical nerve that you say never goes through the spine, it does. it is connected. your body can’t function without your nerves going through the spine. YOU CAN’T EVEN THINK WITHOUT THAT PROCESS GOING THROUGH YOUR SPINE. i think someone needs to go to another Anatomy and Phisiology 101 class. whcih would be a good idea for all to do. we should all be educated in HS about our bodies, but maybe the medical field wouldn’t want that bc ppl would know too much about their own bodies.

Chriopractors believe healing is ADIO – Above Down Inside Out. we believe our bodies heal the way God wanted them to and the way he made them to. You would know that if you actually educated yoruself. Mabye a visit to the chiropractors office would help you learn more on the sbuluxations that people don’t “BELIEVE” in.

there is nothing that they are trying to make you believe, it is fact. your nerves run trhough the body, but not without passing through your spine. healing is from ADIO, the power that made your body, heals the body. our innate inteligence is what takes care of the healing. call it innate, call it God, it’s fact. take an A&P class and they talk about the innate that heals your body. they don’t know how specific it works, but it’s there. that’s the thing, dr’s don’t know everything. not even chiropractors, about our bodies. there’s a lot to learn. obviously, God is the only one that knows all, and even the little boy that lives, breathes and MOVES without the part of the brain that controls movement, has stunned the world – medical or not. But Chiropractors have not been stunned, why? bc they KNOW innate is the ONLY one that lives within us that would allow that little boy to live and move without that.

GO TO A CHIROPRACTOR’S DOCTOR REPORT/REPORT OF FINDINGS THEN, YOU CAN SEE WHAT IT’S ALL ABOUT. of course there will always be a good and a bad doctor, just as with medical doctors, but that’s when you look for a new one. just like with anything in life.

Response moderated (Spam)

Answer this question

Login

or

Join

to answer.

This question is in the General Section. Responses must be helpful and on-topic.

Your answer will be saved while you login or join.

Have a question? Ask Fluther!

What do you know more about?
or
Knowledge Networking @ Fluther