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SOURCE: J Evid Based Comp Altern Med. 2012 (Dec 28); 18 (1): 75-79
Ron LeFebvre, MA, DC, David Peterson, DC, and Mitchell Haas, MA, DC
University of Western States,
Portland, OR, USA.
Evidence-based practice has had a growing impact on chiropractic education and the delivery of chiropractic care. For evidence-based practice to penetrate and transform a profession, the penetration must occur at 2 levels. One level is the degree to which individual practitioners possess the willingness and basic skills to search and assess the literature. Chiropractic education received a significant boost in this realm in 2005 when the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine awarded 4 chiropractic institutions R25 education grants to strengthen their research/evidence-based practice curricula. The second level relates to whether the therapeutic interventions commonly employed by a particular health care discipline are supported by clinical research. A growing body of randomized controlled trials provides evidence of the effectiveness and safety of manual therapies.
Introduction
The use of complementary and alternative medicine has increased dramatically during the past several decades. [1, 2] Estimates based on the 2002 National Health Interview Survey reveal that 62.1% of US adults used complementary and alternative medicine therapies during the previous year. [3] Chiropractic is the largest complementary and alternative medicine profession in the United States, with approximately 70 000 members, [4] and chiropractic services account for the greatest number of complementary and alternative medicine visits. [1] In 2002, approximately 7.4% of Americans consulted a chiropractor for treatment. [2] Chiropractic is a well-established part of the health care delivery system, included under Medicare and Medicaid laws, with worker’s compensation coverage in all 50 states. Insurance coverage for chiropractic is also quite extensive. Approximately 50% of health maintenance organizations and 75% of private health insurance plans cover chiropractic care.
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SOURCE: Medscape Medical News ~ June 24, 2013
Bret S. Stetka, MD
Reporting from The American Psychiatric Association’s 2013 Annual Meeting
Introduction
“Do we have any control over our brain health as we age?”, Dr. Gary Small asked the crowd, a packed room of psychiatrists attending his “Brain Health and Alzheimer’s Prevention” talk at the 2013 Annual Meeting of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) in San Francisco, California. [1]Nearly everyone raised their hands. “If the answer is yes,” he followed, “then what can we do to forestall the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease (AD)?” For the next hour, conference-goers found out or, perhaps, given their line of work, brushed up.
Dr. Small is Professor of Psychiatry and Director of the UCLA Longevity Center at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience & Human Behavior. As session chair Dr. Brent Forester pointed out in his introduction, Small’s list of achievements is humbling: renowned clinician, cutting-edge researcher, author of over 400 scientific publications and 7 popular books, including his latest, The Alzheimer’s Prevention Program. His research has contributed to brain imaging methods capable of detecting AD years before symptoms are present; his healthy lifestyle and memory training programs are widely used throughout the United States. In 2002, Scientific American Magazine named Small one of the world’s top innovators in science and technology.
Up went an image of Madame Jeanne Calment, a French supercentenarian who lived to 122 years. “At 94, Calment sold her apartment to a businessman who agreed to pay her rent for the rest of her life. He died 10 years later,” said Small to the chuckling crowd. He was introducing the idea that certain lifestyles are associated with both longevity and brain health, a term encompassing our various neurologic faculties like memory, thinking, reasoning, mood, and stress responses. There are certain regions in the world — so-called “blue zones” — with abnormally high clusters of centenarians, most notably Sardinia, Italy; Loma Linda, California; and Okinawa, Japan. These regions share a number of characteristics thought to contribute to collective longevity and prolonged brain health on which Small would later expand: Namely, their inhabitants tend to be physically active, socially engaged, and eat a healthy diet high in omega-3 fats, just like the fish-heavy fare most likely enjoyed by Ms. Calment in the south of France.
SOURCE: Dynamic Chiropractic
By James P. Meschino, DC, MS
A study published in the Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry [1] underscores the importance of zinc supplementation, especially as we get older, as an important means to help prevent cancer, support immune function, and control inflammation associated with many health problems, including cancer, heart disease, autoimmune disease and diabetes.
Previous studies by the same researchers showed that, in both animal and human studies, zinc deficiency can cause DNA damage linked to cancer risk. The latest study suggests that zinc deficiency also leads to systemic inflammation. In addition, immune system cells are also particularly vulnerable to zinc deficiencies, and zinc is essential to protect against oxidative stress and help repair DNA damage.
The Latest Findings
Based on findings with laboratory animals, the researchers found that the mechanisms to transport zinc are disrupted by age-related epigenetic changes, which can cause an increase in DNA methylation and histone modifications related to cancer development. More specifically, zinc transporters were significantly dysregulated in old animals. They showed signs of zinc deficiency and had an enhanced inflammatory response, even though their diet supposedly contained adequate amounts of zinc.
When the animals were given about 10 times their dietary requirement for zinc, the biomarkers of inflammation were restored to those of young animals.
Why You Should Supplement With Zinc
SOURCE: Chiropractic Economics
By Kathy Mills Chang
Part 1: Ensure your admitting and ongoing paperwork isn’t slipping through the cracks
Because of the many different techniques and philosophies involved in chiropractic, you can be assured different doctors utilize different admitting and ongoing paperwork.
A recent survey of 80 chiropractors revealed that 72 percent of them collected paperwork for their clinic from various sources, creating a patchwork effect. Because very few utilized an actual system of paperwork, they admitted concern that some documentation could fall through the cracks.
So, what paperwork should you have in your office?
History
Most state chiropractic boards that have a standard of care for patients include taking patient history. If one were to follow the evaluation and management documentation guidelines, history is a significant portion of the value.
Because the requirements entail collecting information about the chief complaint; the history of the present illness; a review of systems; and the patient’s past, family, and social history, there is a substantial amount of information that can and should come from the patient.
Having information laid out in a clear fashion on your admitting paperwork allows the patient to answer the majority of the essential initial consultation questions. Using your admitting paperwork as a template allows you to ensure the required bullet points will be answered by the patient and reviewed by the physician.
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SOURCE: Dynamic Chiropractic
By Kim Christensen, DC, DACRB, CCSP, CSCS
Scoliosis is defined as “any lateral deviation of the spine from the mid-sagittal plane.” [1]
While there are many causes for scoliosis, children and adolescents with scoliosis who present to chiropractors usually fall into three categories.
Successful treatment is dependent upon differentiating the underlying cause of the spinal curvature. In most children, the scoliotic spine is not symptomatic; the spinal curvature is first noticed either by a parent who becomes concerned about a child’s posture, or during a screening examination, usually at school. The importance of a good evaluation and early treatment is to prevent progression and worsening of the curvature. Children with all three major causes of scoliosis should have a careful evaluation of the lower extremities as part of their spinal examination to determine associated or contributing components to the spinal deviation.
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