Low Back Pain

Overall, studies have shown that spinal manipulation as usually provided by chiropractors is an important option—that can provide relief from low-back pain. 

Researchers are currently investigating whether the effects of spinal manipulation depend on the length and frequency of treatment. In one study funded by NCCIH that examined long-term effects in more than 600 people with low-back pain, results suggested that chiropractic care involving spinal manipulation was at least as effective as conventional medical care for up to 18 months.

Source: NIH

Maintenance Care

A paper presented at the European Chiropractors’ Union (ECU) convention in Cyprus in 2017 underscores the advantages of regular chiropractic care. The multi-center, randomized clinical trial was conducted in Sweden, with patients provided with either treatment at regular intervals, regardless of symptoms (Maintenance Care-MC), or symptomatic treatment whereby patients were treated only when consulting for pain. 

The findings have subsequently been published in the prestigious journal PLOS-one

Three hundred and twenty-eight subjects were randomly allocated to one of the two treatment groups.
"The MC group consisted of 163 subjects who reported 12.8  fewer days with bothersome LBP over the 12 month follow-up compared to the 154 subjects in the control group. The take home message was that just 2 extra visits while asymptomatic provided an average of nearly 13 extra pain free days per year. 

Reference:

The Nordic Maintenance Care program: Effectiveness of chiropractic maintenance care versus symptom-guided treatment for recurrent and persistent low back pain—A pragmatic randomized controlled trial

and;
Eklund A, et al. "Prevention of Low Back Pain: Effect of Chiropractic Maintenance Care as Compared to Symptomatic Treatment – A Pragmatic Randomized Clinical Trial." 

Neck Pain

A 2014 evidence-based guideline (1) made the following recommendations:
• For acute neck pain, a recommendation was made for SMT as a treatment for both short- and long-term improvements in pain and number of days to recover.
• For chronic neck pain, SMT was also recommended as a treatment option benefiting pain and disability using 2 sessions per week for 9 weeks.

A 2013 evidence-based guideline (2) from the Italian Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine recommended, SMT for non-specific acute and chronic neck pain

References
1. Bryans R, Decina P, Descarreaux M, Duranleau M, Marcoux H, Potter B, et al. Evidence-based guidelines for the chiropractic treatment of adults with neck pain. J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 2014;37:42-63. 
2. Monticone M, Iovine R, de SG, Rovere G, Uliano D, Arioli G, et al. The Italian Society of Physical and Rehabilitation Medicine (SIMFER) recommendations for neck pain. G Ital Med Lav Ergon. 2013;35:36-50.

Cost effectiveness

Economic evaluation conducted alongside randomised controlled trials investigating treatments for LBP endorsed by the guidelines of the American College of Physicians and the American Pain Society found evidence supporting the cost-effectiveness of spinal manipulation for sub-acute or chronic LBP.

Reference

Lin C-WC, Haas M, Maher CG, Machado LAC, van Tulder MW. Cost-effectiveness of guideline-endorsed treatments for low back pain: a systematic review. European Spine Journal. 2011;20(7):1024-1038. doi:10.1007/s00586-010-1676-3.

SAFETY

Safety remains an important focus of ongoing research:
A 2007 study of treatment outcomes for 19,722 chiropractic patients in the United Kingdom concluded that while minor side effects (such as temporary soreness) after cervical spine manipulation were relatively common, the risk of a serious adverse event was “low to very low”. 

Source: National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health

Headaches

Primary headaches are a common ailment, with a point prevalence in the general population of about 16%. Epidemiological studies report that 5% of adults suffer from headaches on a daily basis; in the USA approximately 7 million adults report suffering from headaches every other day. Three types of headaches have been shown to account for the majority of these episodes: migraine, tension-type, and cervicogenic. The impact on quality-of-life can be comparable to patients with heart disease. In terms of the financial burden, it has been estimated that headaches account for 157 million days per year lost from work, costing US society approximately $50 billion in absenteeism and medical benefits.

Randomised trials have shown clinically important differences in favour of spinal manipulation for some types of headaches.

References

1. Haas M(1), Groupp E, Aickin M, Fairweather A, Ganger B, Attwood M, Cummins C, Baffes L.J Dose response for chiropractic care of chronic cervicogenic headache and associated neck pain: a randomized pilot study. J Manip Physiol Ther. 2004 Nov-Dec;27(9):547-53.

2. Haas,M., Spegman, A., Peterson, D., et al Dose response and efficacy of spinal manipulation for chronic cervicogenic headache: a pilot randomized controlled trial, 2010 The Spine  Journal,10(2),117-128

Education

Chiro @Murdoch University

The Murdoch course is a 5 year double Bachelor’s degree. Students complete a Bachelor of Science, preparing them in the human biological sciences and introductory chiropractic units, over three years. They then progress onto the second degree, the Bachelor of Clinical Chiropractic, which takes two more years. They need to complete both degrees to be eligible for registration and clinical practice. Part-time enrolment is available. With a degree accredited by the Council on Chiropractic Education Australasia (CCEA), graduates are eligible for registration in Australia, New Zealand and many other parts of the world. For further admission information about this course, please download the Information Pack.

Source: Murdoch University

In Australasia Chiropractic courses are also available at CQU, Macquarie and RMIT universities and New Zealand Chiropractic College