“What should I do about my back pain? It’s been going on for
so long.”
Sound familiar? Sure, it does! Yorkville Chiropractic and Wellness Centre knows
Toronto
back pain patients wrestle with this question. There
are a variety of options – rest, exercise, meds, manipulation, chiropractic,
medicine, yoga, acupuncture, surgery, etc. – which makes it hard
to choose. Recent research has looked at the cost,
safety, and risk of treatment escalation for patients who choose
spinal manipulation
initially versus those who choose opioid
analgesic treatment first for their chronic low back pain. The results
are thought-provoking.
COSTS OF OPIOID VS SMT FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN MEDICARE
PATIENTS
Chronic low back pain is a costly condition, but just how
costly is it? An analysis of Medicare health spendings
for long-term care of chronic low back pain assessed the costs
of opioid analgesic treatment versus those for spinal manipulation
therapy. There were 28,160 participants aged 65-84 years old. 77% began
with opioid therapy for their chronic low back pain. 23% started
with SMT. The long-term expenses for opioid-therapy patients were 58%
lower, but long-term overall healthcare expenditures were 1.87
times greater for those same opioid patients. (1) Yorkville Chiropractic and Wellness Centre
follows a system of Toronto chiropractic treatment frequency guided
by the 50% Rule looking for 50% relief of pain within 30 days with more visits initially and less
as the pain reduces.
SAFETY OF OPIOIDS VS SMT FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN MEDICARE
PATIENTS
Cost is one thing. What about safety? An analysis
of patient files of Medicare beneficiaries aged 65 to 84 with chronic low back
pain for 5 years looked at the long-term safety of two usual
approaches to chronic low back pain: opioid
analgesic therapy and spinal manipulation therapy. The researchers studied
a variety of patient records: patients who only received
spinal manipulation, only received opioids, started with
opioids then had spinal manipulation, and started
with spinal manipulation then supplemented with opioids. What did
they find? The risk of adverse drug events was quite a bit
higher – 42 times higher - for patients who started with opioid
therapy first for their chronic back pain than those who began with spinal manipulation. (2) Yorkville Chiropractic and Wellness Centre utilizes the
well research-documented, safe, gentle protocols of Cox® Technic.
ESCALATION OF CARE RISK FOR CHRONIC LOW BACK PAIN MEDICARE
PATIENTS
Research documents another important factor in
back pain treatment: how well does a treatment help the patient avoid more complex treatment? A third review of
Medicare patient data looked at
escalation of care risk – hospital stays, emergency room visits,
imaging, back surgery, pain med interventions, and other such encounters
for potential complications of chronic low back pain – in long-term
chronic low back pain care patients who began with opioid analgesic
therapy or spinal manipulation therapy. Commencing care with
spinal manipulation therapy was associated with lower
rates of escalation of care. The rate of escalated care encounters was 2.5 times
higher for opioid treatment patients. (3) The use of
Cox® Technic at Yorkville Chiropractic and Wellness Centre lessens the need
for escalated care while cautiously monitoring each patient for
any signs that such may be helpful or needed.
CONTACT Yorkville Chiropractic and Wellness Centre
Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. Nike Taylor on The
Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as she describes
treatment of chronic low back pain with the Cox® Technic Flexion
Distraction System of Spinal Pain Management.
Make your Toronto
chiropractic appointment now. Whether the answer
to the question of “what should I do about my back pain?” was opioid treatment
or other care, spinal manipulation at Yorkville Chiropractic and Wellness Centre may well be your next (or
your initial if you are just beginning the search
for help) treatment that will help you attain the back pain
relief you are seeking in a cost-effective, safe way.