http://www.wholehealthcenters.com/blog Tue, 11 Oct 2011 21:55:16 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 http://www.wholehealthcenters.com/blog/reports/two-studies-further-validate-safety-and-value-of-cervical-adjustments/ http://www.wholehealthcenters.com/blog/reports/two-studies-further-validate-safety-and-value-of-cervical-adjustments/#comments Fri, 08 Aug 2008 15:16:44 +0000 Dr. Michael Beggs http://www.wholehealthcenters.com/blog/?p=370 Two recently completed surveys bring more good news for the Chiropractic commu­nity. One had to do with the overall safety of Chiropractic adjustments to the neck region. The second showed the very positive effects of cervical adjustments in reducing high blood pressure. The results of both studies were published in October 2007.

The first study took place in England with results reported in the scientific medical journal Spine. This national survey took a look at the outcomes of 19,722 Chiropractic patients who had received some form of neck adjustment. The researchers reviewed a total of 50,276 neck adjustments to see if there were any serious side effects from Chiropractic care. They defined serious effects to be those that resulted in the need to be referred to a hospital, or any that caused a worsening of symptoms immediately after treatment, or any that resulted in persistent or significant disability or incapacity.

The researchers arrived at very positive results. “There were no reports of serious adverse events,” they said. Overall, they found cervical neck adjustments to be a safe procedure in the UK when administered by trained and registered Chiropractors.

In the U.S., a study published in the Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research showed that Chiropractic adjustments had a profound effect on reducing Stage 1 hyper­tension. (Stage 1 is the first level of elevated blood pressure that causes health concerns.) The goal of the research was to determine if non-surgical procedures to properly align the Atlas (top) vertebra in the neck produced changes in blood pressure and heart rate.

This study compared two groups of subjects who had a history of Stage 1 hyperten­sion with no apparent cause or disease creating this condition. One group of patients received Chiropractic adjustment and the other received “sham intervention” similar to an authentic procedure.

Both groups were examined before and after the procedures, with blood pressure read showed that both the systolic and diastolic blood pressure readings were significantly reduced for the group who received an actual adjustment to their Atlas vertebra. “This pilot study shows that correction of misalignment of the Atlas vertebra lowers and sus­tains reductions in blood pressure for at least 8 weeks in people with Stage 1 hyperten­sion.”

Source: “Research Shows Chiropractic Helps Stage One Hypertension” and “Medical Study Demonstrates Chiropractic Safety for Neck Adjustments”, Kid Chiropractic, November 2007, www.kidchiropractic.com

]]> http://www.wholehealthcenters.com/blog/reports/two-studies-further-validate-safety-and-value-of-cervical-adjustments/feed/ 0 http://www.wholehealthcenters.com/blog/reports/blood-pressure-reacts-favorably-to-regular-acupuncture-treatments/ http://www.wholehealthcenters.com/blog/reports/blood-pressure-reacts-favorably-to-regular-acupuncture-treatments/#comments Fri, 13 Jun 2008 18:21:21 +0000 Troy Krebs, L.Ac. http://www.wholehealthcenters.com/blog/?p=211 People who have concerns about their blood pressure, but who are adverse to the use of drugs to alter their condition may wish to consider a regular schedule of Acupuncture treat­ments to help handle hypertension.

A new study involving 160 people was recently conducted by researchers from the University of Erlangen in Germany and Nanjing University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in China. The goal was to determine if Acupuncture could reduce systolic and diastolic blood pressure.

The members of the study were randomly divided into two groups. Members were to receive either active or sham Acupuncture extended over a period of 6 weeks. Sessions were set to last 30 minutes and each person received a total of 22 treatments. Needling points for the active group were chosen according to a typical Chinese prescription for hypertension treatment. Those who received the sham Acupuncture were treated in locations with no rele­vance to blood pressure.

According to researchers, “There was a significant difference in post-treatment blood pressures adjusted for baseline values between the active and sham Acupuncture groups at the end of treatment.” For example, before treatment, the mean 24 hour systolic/diastolic reading was 131/81 for the active group and 129/80 for the sham group. By the end of the six weeks of treatment, the active group’s mean systolic/diastolic pressure was 125/78 and the sham group was virtually unchanged at 130/80. This would be an overall change of 6 points of systolic reduction and 3 points of diastolic drop.

Researchers were quick to point out that that reduction in hypertension had mainly short term value. When blood pressure was tested again at 3-month and 6-month intervals follow­ing treatment, the active group had returned to pretreatment levels. This makes it important for persons who control their blood pressure through Acupuncture to receive regular treat­ments.

In conclusion, the researchers recommended: “As shown in the present study, Acupuncture may offer an alternative anti-hypertensive therapeutic option. Acupuncture effectively lowered systolic and diastolic blood pressures during the treatment period with no or minimal side effects.”

Source: Acupuncture Today, 2007, http://www.acupuncturetoday.com/mpacms/at/article.php?id=31553

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