Scoliosis Journal publishes article on the safety of chiropractic scoliosis treatment

August 5, 2016—The peer-reviewed scientific journal Scoliosis published the first-ever study on the side effects of chiropractic scoliosis treatment.  Written by Josh Woggon, DC (Parker ’10) and Dennis Woggon, DC (Palmer ’74) of the CLEAR Scoliosis Institute, this is also the first full-text article accepted for publication in this journal authored by doctors of chiropractic.

The study utilized a practice-based research network to report the experiences of 189 patients from 9 different clinics across 3,198 unique visits, over a timeframe of one calendar year.  The results support the conclusion that the chiropractic treatment of scoliosis is very safe, with no serious adverse events or hospitalizations reported.  The most common side effect is muscle soreness, which occurred in roughly one out of every five patients.

“This is a very important finding,” said Josh Woggon, lead author on the study and director of research for the CLEAR Scoliosis Institute.  “Before we can investigate the effectiveness of any new treatment, it is always important to first establish its safety.  This lays the foundation for future studies into the effectiveness of chiropractic scoliosis treatment, and encourages potential patients that the chiropractic care of scoliosis – when performed by educated and certified chiropractic physicians – is a safe and viable option for them.”

The study assessed how patients reported feeling immediately after receiving a specialized chiropractic treatment protocol designed specifically to help people with scoliosis, which included specialized chiropractic adjustments, massage, whole-body vibration (WBV) therapy, spinal exercises, and other therapies.  Over 95 percent of the time, scoliosis patients reported feeling the same or better after the treatment.

The article can be accessed online at www.ScoliosisJournal.com. Scoliosis is the official journal of Society of Scoliosis Orthopedic Rehabilitation Techniques (SOSORT), which is the largest international association dedicated to the non-surgical treatment of scoliosis.  Dr. Josh and Dennis Woggon are both members of SOSORT.

Source: CLEAR Scoliosis Institute