What’s the optimal duration of chiropractic care for work-related disabilities?
30 days for low back pain, according to this study by the Liberty Mutual Research Institute for Safety in Hopkins, Massachusetts.
First, the details.
- Patients from 4 states who received chiropractic care for uncomplicated occupational low back pain (OLBP) were identified through worker’s compensation claims.
And, the results.
- Chiropractic care was started within 30 days after the onset of OLBP by 89% of claimants.
- Of those, 48% ended chiropractic care within 30 days.
- After controlling for potential confounding factors, shorter chiropractic care duration was still significantly associated with a lower likelihood of work-disability recurrence and 8.6% shorter work-disability duration.
The bottom line?
According to the authors, there was no benefit of chiropractic care for more than 30 days in reducing work-disability recurrence or duration in OLBP.
1/15/08 22:41 JR