| Have you been to a practitioner besides
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| | chiropractors - experienced fewer
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| your family physician? Whether
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| | hospitalizations, underwent fewer
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| chiropractic care, acupuncture, yoga or
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| | surgeries and used considerably fewer
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| homeopathy, Complementary and Alternative
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| | pharmaceuticals than HMO patients who
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| Medicine (CAM) has become increasingly
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| | received traditional medical care."
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| common in the United States, and 72% of
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| | A large national survey of all studies on
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| adults use some form of CAM therapies
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| | treatments for back pain, the most
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| according to the US National Centers for
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| | common cause of disability in working
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| Disease Control and US National Center
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| | Americans, lead by William Meeker, DC,
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| for Health Statistics.
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| | PhD, and Marc Micozzi, MD, PhD, found
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| A recent cover story in The New York
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| | that chiropractic was more effective at
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| Times Magazine highlighted how chronic
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| | reducing pain and restoring function, and
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| pain tends to be under treated because
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| | was less costly and dangerous than
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| doctors worry about over prescribing
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| | medical and surgical management.
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| medications, and being liable for
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| | Another study, in the Journal of
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| malpractice or even criminal penalties.
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| | Rehabilitation, Research & Development
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| Many doctors fear entering the field of
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| | examined the effectiveness of a wide
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| pain management at all. Many patients are
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| | range of complementary and alternative
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| also concerned about becoming dependant
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| | medicines in the treatment of chronic
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| on medication or about the invasiveness
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| | pain. This encompassing study examined
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| and dangers of surgery and anesthesia.
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| | clinical trials and previous studies done
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| CAM therapies, which are able to treat
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| | on the therapies.
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| pain and help manage diseases without
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| | Acupuncture is an effective treatment for
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| medication or surgery, are rapidly
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| | chemotherapy related pain, dental pain,
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| growing services as people search out
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| | low back pain, and probably premenstrual
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| better, safer approaches.
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| | syndrome pain. They found massage therapy
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| So how effective are Complementary and
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| | effective for lower back pain and
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| Alternative Medicine therapies?
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| | shoulder pain, but found less evidence
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| One recent study published in the Journal
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| | for its treating fibromyalgia, neck pain,
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| of Manipulative and Physiological
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| | headache, and carpel tunnel syndrome.
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| Therapeutics tracked data from a unique
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| | Yoga in turn has been found to very
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| organization, the Independent Physicians
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| | effective for carpal tunnel syndrome and
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| Association (IPA) where chiropractors
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| | many forms of arthritis. For some
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| serve as first-contact, primary care
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| | therapies like reiki, homeopathy, and
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| physicians.
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| | therapeutic touch ("laying on hands"),
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| This study found patients treated by
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| | there are few clinical trials done,
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| these practitioners reported lower costs
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| | making it difficult to prove
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| and higher satisfaction rates than those
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| | effectiveness.
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| treated by conventional medical doctors.
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| | Still, for the many who routinely seek
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| One of the co-authors of the study James
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| | out alternative and complementary
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| Winterstein DC, said that they found
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| | treatments, it has less to do with
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| that, "patients visiting CAM-orientated
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| | clinical trials than with their own
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| primary care physicians (PCP) - primarily
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| | positive experience.
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