Who uses chiropractic?

 Here are a few studies examining the populations of patients who visit chiropractors. Click on Related Articles in PubMed to retrieve more records.

Blum C, Globe G, Terre L, Mirtz TA, Greene L, Globe D. Multinational survey of chiropractic patients: reasons for seeking care. JCCA: J Can Chiropr Assoc 2008 August;52(3):175-84. [Open Access]
INTRODUCTION: This study explores the extent to which consumers seek wellness care when choosing chiropractors whose practice methods are known to include periodic evaluative and interventional methods to maintain wellness and prevent illness.
METHODS: Using an international convenience sample of Sacro-Occipital Technique (SOT) practitioners, 1316 consecutive patients attending 27 different chiropractic clinics in the USA, Europe and Australia completed a one-page survey on intake to assess reason for seeking care. A forced choice response was obtained characterizing the patient’s reason for seeking chiropractic care.
RESULTS: More than 40% of chiropractic patient visits were initiated for the purposes of health enhancement and/or disease prevention.
CONCLUSION: Although prudence dictates great caution when generalizing from this study, if confirmed by subsequent research among other similar cohorts, the present results may lend support to continued arguments of consumer demand for a more comprehensive paradigm of chiropractic care, beyond routine musculoskeletal complaints, that conceptualizes the systemic, nonspecific effects of the chiropractic encounter in much broader terms.

Hurwitz EL, Chiang LM. A comparative analysis of chiropractic and general practitioner patients in North America: Findings from the joint Canada/United States Survey of Health, 2002-03. BMC Health Serv Res 2006 April 6;6:49.:49. [Oopen Access]
BACKGROUND: Scientifically rigorous general population-based studies comparing chiropractic with primary-care medical patients within and between countries have not been published. The objective of this study is to compare care seekers of doctors of chiropractic (DCs) and general practitioners (GPs) in the United States and Canada on a comprehensive set of sociodemographic, quality of life, and health-related variables.
METHODS: Data are from the Joint Canada/U.S. Survey of Health (JCUSH), 2002-03, a random sample of adults in Canada (N = 3505) and the U.S. (N = 5183). Respondents were categorized according to their pattern of health-care use in the past year. Distributions, percentages, and estimates (adjusted odds ratios) weighted to reflect the complex survey design were produced.
RESULTS: Nearly 80% of respondents sought care from GPs; 12% sought DC care. Compared with GP only patients, DC patients in both countries tend to be under 65 and white, with arthritis and disabling back or neck pain. U.S. DC patients are more likely than GP only patients to be obese and to lack a regular doctor; Canadian DC patients are more likely than GP only patients to be college educated, to have higher incomes, and dissatisfied with MD care. Compared with seekers of both GP and DC care, DC only patients in both countries have fewer chronic conditions, take fewer drugs, and have no regular doctor. U.S. DC only patients are more likely than GP+DC patients to be uninsured and dissatisfied with health care; Canadian DC only patients are more likely than GP+DC patients to be under 45, male, less educated, smokers, and not obese, without disabling back or neck pain, on fewer drugs, and lacking a regular doctor.
CONCLUSION: Chiropractic and GP patients are dissimilar in both Canada and the U.S., with key differences between countries and between DC patients who do and do not seek care from GPs. Such variation has broad and potentially far-reaching health policy and research implications.

Wolsko PM, Eisenberg DM, Davis RB, Kessler R, Phillips RS. Patterns and perceptions of care for treatment of back and neck pain: Results of a national survey. Spine 2003 February 1;28(3):292-7.
STUDY DESIGN: We conducted a nationally representative random household telephone survey to assess therapies used to treat back or neck pain.
OBJECTIVES: The main outcome was complementary therapies used in the last year to treat back or neck pain.
SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: Back pain and neck pain are common medical conditions that cause substantial morbidity. Despite the presumed importance of complementary therapies for these conditions, studies of care for back and neck pain have not gathered information about the use of complementary therapies.
METHODS: Our nationally representative survey sampled 2055 adults. The survey gathered detailed information about medical conditions, conventional and complementary therapies used to treat those conditions, and the perceived helpfulness of those therapies.
RESULTS: We found that of those reporting back or neck pain in the last 12 months, 37% had seen a conventional provider and 54% had used complementary therapies to treat their condition. Chiropractic, massage, and relaxation techniques were the most commonly used complementary treatments for back or neck pain (20%, 14%, and 12%, respectively, of those with back or neck pain). Chiropractic, massage, and relaxation techniques were rated as “very helpful” for back or neck pain among users (61%, 65%, and 43%, respectively), whereas conventional providers were rated as “very helpful” by 27% of users. We estimate that nearly one-third of all complementary provider visits in 1997 (203 million of 629 million) were made specifically for the treatment of back or neck pain.
CONCLUSIONS: Chiropractic, massage, relaxation techniques, and other complementary methods all play an important role in the care of patients with back or neck pain. Treatment for back and neck pain was responsible for a large proportion of all complementary provider visits made in 1997. The frequent use and perceived helpfulness of commonly used complementary methods for these conditions warrant further investigation.

Coulter ID, Hurwitz EL, Adams AH, Genovese BJ, Hays R, Shekelle PG. Patients using chiropractors in North America: Who are they, and why are they in chiropractic care? Spine 2002 February 1;27(3):291-6.
SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA AND OBJECTIVES: Alternative health care was used by an estimated 42% of the U.S. population in 1997, and chiropractors accounted for 31% of the total estimated number of visits. Despite this high level of use, there is little empirical information about who uses chiropractic care or why.
METHODS: The authors surveyed randomly sampled chiropractors (n = 131) at six study sites and systematically sampled chiropractic patients seeking care from participating chiropractors on 1 day (n = 1275). Surveys collected data about the patient’s reason for seeking chiropractic care, health status, health attitude and beliefs, and satisfaction. In addition to descriptive statistics, the authors compared data between patients and chiropractors, and between patients and previously published data on health status from other populations, corrected for the clustering of patients within chiropractors.
RESULTS: More than 70% of patients specified back and neck problems as their health problem for which they sought chiropractic care. Chiropractic patients had significantly worse health status on all SF-36 scales than an age- and gender-matched general population sample. Compared with medical back pain patients, chiropractic back pain patients had significantly worse mental health (6-8 point decrement). Roland-Morris scores for chiropractic back pain patients were similar to values reported for medical back pain patients. The health attitudes and beliefs of chiropractors and their patients were similar. Patients were very satisfied with their care.
CONCLUSION: These data support the theory that patients seek chiropractic care almost exclusively for musculoskeletal symptoms and that chiropractors and their patients share a similar belief system.

Cote P, Cassidy JD, Carroll L. The treatment of neck and low back pain: who seeks care? who goes where? Med Care 2001 September;39(9):956-67.
BACKGROUND: Neck and low back pain are leading causes of morbidity and health care utilization. However, little is known about the characteristics that differentiate those who seek from those who do not seek health care for their pain.
OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to: 1) describe health care utilization for neck and back pain; 2) determine the characteristics of individuals seeking health care for neck and back pain; and 3) identify the characteristics of patients who consult medical doctors, chiropractors, or both.
DESIGN: Population-based cross-sectional mailed survey. SUBJECTS: Subjects were randomly selected adults from the Saskatchewan Health Insurance and Registration File.
MEASURES: Demographic, socio-economic, general health, comorbidity, health-related-quality-of-life, pain severity and health care utilization data were collected. The main outcome was whether subjects with prevalent neck or low back pain visited a health care provider in the previous month.
RESULTS: Twenty-five percent of individuals with neck or low back pain visited a health care provider. Seeking health care was associated with disabling neck or back pain, digestive disorders, worse bodily pain and worse physical-role-functioning. Compared with medical patients, fewer chiropractic patients lived in rural areas or reported arthritis, but they reported better social and physical functioning. More patients consulting both providers reported disabling neck or back pain.
CONCLUSIONS: Individuals seeking care for neck or back pain have worse health status than those who do not seek care. Patients consulting chiropractors alone report fewer comorbidities and are less limited in their activities than those consulting medical doctors.

---