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Manahawkin Chiropractic Care Instead of an Emergency Room Visit and Pain Meds for Back Pain

Emergency room physicians are working on figuring out what is optimal to do for back pain patients who choose the ER for help. It is a dilemma for them, especially since nearly 3 million such patients with undifferentiated musculoskeletal low back pain visit the emergency room for help annually! (1) Unless there is cauda equina syndrome demanding surgery or an infection, pain is the issue. What can a Manahawkin ER do? How can an ER doctor deliver higher value care? (2) Imaging and medication. What can the Manahawkin chiropractic back pain specialist provide? Spinal manipulation and nutrients. Chiropractic has published about successful management of back pain.

EMERGENCY ROOM: IMAGING

The ER performs a lot of imaging. One in 3 patients who visit the emergency department for back pain (compared to 1 in 4 who seek care from a primary care physician) gets imaging done: simple imaging 26%, complex imaging 8.2%. (3) Today’s imaging recommendations don’t support this as they say to hold off on imaging for 4-6 weeks of conservative care before imaging. (4) Maybe patients are telling ER doctors that they have been under such care already? Probably not as only 34% of patients who visit an ER share with the emergency department physician that they use healthcare options like chiropractors, massage therapy, acupuncture and the like. (5) What about the pain?

EMERGENCY ROOM: MEDICATIONS

Relief for the pain is what they focus on. Researchers have studied all sorts of pain medication combinations ER doctors have prescribed to determine what works best. What have they discovered? Stronger pain medication options do not offer much of a difference. Adding baclofen, metaxalone, or tizanidine to ibuprofen doesn’t seem to up function or pain any more than placebo plus ibuprofen by 1 week after an ED visit for acute low back pain. (6,7) Mixing ibuprofen and acetaminophen did not decrease pain scores or the need for other analgesic pain meds compared with either ibuprofen or acetaminophen alone for emergency room patients with acute musculoskeletal injuries. (8) As a matter of fact, 48% of back pain patients who visit an emergency room for their back pain still had functional impairment 3 months later as well as 42% reported moderate or severe pain. 46% report using some type of analgesic pain reliever in the last day. There are short and long-term problems for ER patients with low back pain. (1) This might be frustrating for emergency department docs and their patients but not typically for chiropractors and their chiropractic back pain patients. The Manahawkin chiropractic back pain specialist at Manahawkin Chiropractic Center is armed with the best of chiropractic care for Manahawkin back pain relief.

CHIROPRACTIC: MANIPULATION AND NUTRIENTS

Your Manahawkin chiropractor gets it. Skill with chiropractic spinal manipulation via The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management with the addition of nutrition like chondroitin sulfate, glucosamine sulfate and curcurmin and turmeric boosts your Manahawkin chiropractor’s confidence that back pain relief and management for many otherwise frustrated Manahawkin back pain patients is possible.

Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Michael Schneider on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson who shares the goal of the primary spine physician who would be the physician to turn to for back pain issues.

CONTACT Manahawkin Chiropractic Center

Schedule a Manahawkin chiropractic appointment with Manahawkin Chiropractic Center especially if an emergency department visit has not produced the pain relief you hoped. Manahawkin chiropractic care has figured out a well-documented and researched way to manage back pain.

	Manahawkin Chiropractic Center welcomes Manahawkin back pain patients to the clinic instead of the emergency room for pain meds whenever possible. 
 
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"This information and website content is not intended to diagnose, guarantee results, or recommend specific treatment or activity. It is designed to educate and inform only. Please consult your physician for a thorough examination leading to a diagnosis and well-planned treatment strategy. See more details on the DISCLAIMER page. Content is reviewed by Dr. James M. Cox I."