Cornerstone Family Chiropractic

What Are the Risks of Chiropractic Neck Adjustments?

Chiropractic researcher and New York College of Chiropractic faculty member Dr. William J. Lauretti conducted an exploration of all scientific literature regarding the safety of cervical manipulation (neck adjustment). The resulting article is one of the most comprehensive analyses available . He estimated the risks of stroke or other serious neurological complication resulting form a chiropractic neck adjustment, and compared it to risks associated with other medical treatments and accidents. He found the following:

Estimated Risks of Common Chiropractic Treatments, Common Medical Treatments, and Accidents:

*Risk of death in fatal air crash, flying three hours on US Commercial Airline—1 in 2,000,000

*Risk of death in motor vehicle accident, driving 35 miles—1 in 2,000,000

*Risk of serious stroke or neurological complication resulting from a chiropractic neck adjustment—1 in 2,000,000 treatments (best estimate). Range from 1 in 500,000 to 1 in 5,000,000

*Being injured in motor vehicle accident, driving 1/2 mile—1 in 2,000,000

*Risk of death, per year, from GI bleeding due to NSAID use for osteoarthritis and related conditions—800 in 2,000,000

*Overall mortality rate for spinal injury—7 in 10,000

*Death rate from cervical spine surgery—4-10 in 10,000

*Rate of serious or life-threatening complications from spinal stenosis surgery—5 in 100

*Risk of developing a gastric ulcer visible on endoscopic examination after one week’s treatment with naproxen (at 500mg twice daily) - 19 percent (380,000 in 2,000,000)

Source: Dr. William J. Lauretti, “What Are the Risks of Chiropractic Neck Adjustments?”

Death Due To:

Auto Accident—1 in 6,500

Alcohol—1 in 12,000

Hot Tap Water—1 in 64,000

Falling Down Stairs—1 in 200,000

Acetaminophen (Tylenol, etc.) - 1 in 666,000

Lightning—1 in 5,000,000

Cervical Manipulation Complication—1 in 5,000,000

Source: National Safety Council, 2004

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