Study Touts Benefits of Chiropractic Care for Kids With Low Back Pain

Published in the January 2003 issue of the peer-reviewed periodical, Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics (JMPT), is the results of a study on lower back pain in children. The journal article starts off by noting that about 50% of children suffer from lower back pain at one time or another. It also notes that about 15% of children experience frequent or continual pain.

The study was conducted on 54 children between the ages of 4 and 18 in the cities of Calgary, Alberta, and Toronto, Ontario, Canada. In the study the children with lower back pain received chiropractic care from a variety of volunteer chiropractors in Canada. The children were tracked regularly during the study to monitor their progress. Results were obtained in several ways including responses from the patients themselves on how they felt their progress was coming.

Results of the study showed improvement over the follow-up period was observed in 46% to 92% of the children for various criteria. In a period of 30 days 82% of the children reported that they were "much improved."

The researchers conclusions were, "Patients responded favorably to chiropractic management, and there were no reported complications."