Chiropractic Use Inversely Rated To Opioid Use

In a recent review of studies published in the medical journal Pain Medicine, researchers found patients being treated for back and neck pain with chiropractic care were significantly less likely to use opioid prescriptions for pain relief. Opioids are prescribed by medical doctors to treat pain, including back and neck pain. However, opioids are highly addictive and have been massively overprescribed which has resulted in a massive misuse and abuse of the drug. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), of the 70,237 drug overdose deaths in the United States in 2017, approximately two thirds (47,600) involved an opioid. Given these increasingly staggering numbers, a group of researchers set out to determine if there was any association between chiropractic care and prescription opioid use in the treatment of back and neck pain. What the researchers discovered during their review of current research was that patients receiving chiropractic care for back or neck pain had 64% lower odds of receiving an opioid prescription than those not receiving chiropractic care for their back or neck pain. While further studies are needed, the data thus far indicates chiropractic care for back and neck pain appears to reduce the need for far more dangerous forms of pain relief, such as opioids.