St. Louis Park Chiropractor Best Practices
Research Commentary;
Chiropractic for Patients with Asthma
A review of
Kaminskyj, A., Frazier, M., Johnstone, K., & Gleberzon, B. J. (2010, March). Chiropractic care for patients with asthma: A systematic review of the literature. The Journal of the Canadian Chiropractic Association. Retrieved July 28, 2022, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2829683/
Research Reviewed by Dr. Antonio Flaquer
Summarized Review of Conclusion:
This study focuses on eight different studies done with chiropractic manipulative therapy and asthmatic patients and the improvement it shows with the patients. Chiropractic care is being sought out as an adjunct to medical management despite the positive effects they have seen in the studies. Although there aren’t significant changes in the asthmatic individuals, there has been some improvement with the patients breathing pattern after the adjustments were delivered.
Below I have referenced key quotes from this research to help summarize the results.
Quotes from the Article:
“Results of the eight retrieved studies indicated that chiropractic care showed improvements in subjective measures and, to a lesser degree objective measures, none of which were statistically significant.”
“In treating asthmatic patients, the objective of chiropractic spinal manipulative therapy (high amplitude, low velocity thrusts) is to increase the motion of the thoracic cage, mobilize the ribs, enhance arterial supply and lymphatic return, and to affect nervous system activity, all in hope of reducing symptomatology of the patient.”
“Subjective measures varied amongst the selected literature, including reported number of asthma attacks, medication use, quality of life, patient-reported changes in asthma symptomatology, modified Oswestry rating scale, and asthma diary logs. A noticeable trend of improvement in these measures was recognized across the reviewed literature.”
Introduction to the Research
The purpose of the research was to determine if chiropractic treatment was beneficial for someone with asthma and to see if this improved their quality of breathing.
Research Methodology
The methodological quality of the studies that met the selection criteria was assessed by the authors using the 27-item scoring checklist developed by Downs and Black.3 The scoring checklist is considered valid and reliable for assessing randomized and nonrandomized studies.3 It was determined, partially through retrieving articles, that there likely would not be many randomized controlled trials, and as such, a methodological scoring system allowing nonrandomized studies to be evaluated was considered necessary. Items 5 and 27 were revised from the original Downs and Black checklist to be worth 1 point each so that the modified total score was 27. The authors individually reviewed each included article for quality (based on the Downs and Black checklist) using a quality scoring sheet. Quality scores above 20 were considered good; 11–20, moderate; and below 11, poor.7 The three authors independently rated all the studies, recorded final scores for each article, and resolved any differences by discussion.
Research Findings
The biggest takeaway from the research is that chiropractic manipulative therapy can help with patients that have asthma (chronic or acute). The reasoning behind this is because as we said above, chiropractors can adjust the thoracic spine which helps release tension within the midback. When tension is built up, inflammation sets in and there is not a clear communication path between brain and body. Since our nerves to our lungs come from the thoracic spine, this is one of the areas we would focus on. When chiropractors adjust the thoracic spine, there is a sympathetic effect on the body which causes the bronchioles in the lungs to dilate allowing more oxygen to flow through. This is why it is important for not only asthmatic to continue getting adjusted, but anybody who is caring stress or tension in the midback which is everybody.
Research References
As always with these reviews, these are my takeaways from the article and I encourage you to read the article in its entirety. The references used in this article by the authors of this article are listed here.
Our Message
If you’re looking for a Chiropractor near you that you can trust, choose one who will not only get rid of your back pain, neck pain, or headaches but who will also guide you to living a healthier lifestyle to keep you out of pain. Our Chiropractors located in St. Louis Park, near the corner of MN-100 S & Lake Rd./Westside Dr., will teach you what the research says about how and why we should eat a better diet, move more and have more positive thoughts. By improving these areas of our lives we can become healthier, stay out of pain and decrease pain!