Chiropractic manipulation results in little or no risk of chest injury

According to new study in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics

2011-05-13

(Press-News.org) Lombard, IL, May 13, 2011 – Dynamic chest compression occurs during spinal manipulation. While dynamic chest compression has been well studied in events such as motor vehicle collisions, chest compression forces have not been studied during chiropractic manipulation. In a study published online today in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, researchers quantified and analyzed the magnitude of chest compressions during typical as well as maximum chiropractic manipulation and have found them to be well under the threshold for injury.

"Results from this preliminary study showed that maximum chest compression during chiropractic manipulation of the thoracic spine is unlikely to result in injury," according to lead investigator Brian D. Stemper, PhD, Associate Professor, Department of Neurosurgery, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI. "We performed this study to get a better understanding of the force limits of chiropractic manipulation. This information may lead to safer manipulation procedures and help to decrease the possibility of adverse patient outcomes."

In the first part of the study Professor Stemper and his co-investigators worked with two practicing doctors of chiropractic, each with a minimum of 4 years of doctoral training and at least 7 years of healthcare experience. Using a crash test dummy they measured the level of chest compression induced during "normal" chiropractic manipulation and during spinal manipulations wherein the doctors of chiropractic exerted maximum effort. They performed simulated chiropractic manipulations on the test dummy at the midback level (T7 to T8 vertebrae).

In the second part of the study, an instrumented mechanical device was used to apply and measure the forces necessary to induce chest compression in the test dummy. These forces were increased until injurious levels of force were reached. The likelihood of injury was assessed and classified using the Abbreviated Injury Scale (AIS), which is a useful classification system that has been correlated to injury thresholds during biomechanical experimentation.

In the present study, manipulations incorporating typical and maximum efforts by the doctors of chiropractic resulted in maximum chest compressions corresponding to minimal risk of AIS 1 level injuries.

As with all types of patient care, Professor Stemper cautions that "individual patient characteristics including age, degeneration, and gender" should be taken into consideration during treatment such as chiropractic manipulation.

### The article is "An Experimental Study of Chest Compression During Chiropractic Manipulation of the Thoracic Spine Using an Anthropomorphic Test Device" by Brian D. Stemper, PhD, Jason J. Hallman, PhD, and Boyd M. Peterson, DC. It will appear in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, Volume 34, Issue 5 (June 2011), DOI 10.1016/j.jmpt.2011.04.001, published by Elsevier.

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Small Iowa Driver's Rights Cards Make BIG Impact On OWI Stops

2011-05-13

The Iowa Driver's Rights Cards are small, but they are making a BIG impact on a person's preservation and protection of their Constitutional and Statutory Rights, the evidence obtained during an investigation and the final outcome if charges are filed. What are Iowa Driver's Rights Cards? The Iowa Driver's Rights Cards, developed by the attorneys at Gourley, Rehkemper & Lindholm, PLC (GRL Law) of Des Moines, Iowa, are two cards: one card for your key chain with GRL's 24x7 telephone number on it, and the other card to hand to a police officer investigating you as ...

Elevated protein levels in cardiac muscles could predict mortality following angioplasty

2011-05-13

New research shows that elevated levels of cardiac troponin T (cTnT) or I (cTnI) in patients who had angioplasty indicate a higher risk of all-cause mortality and long-term adverse events such as heart attack. Routine monitoring of these protein levels following nonemergent percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) could improve long-term outcomes for these patients. Details of the analysis are available online in Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions, a peer-reviewed journal of The Society for Cardiovascular Angiography and Interventions (SCAI). More than ...

Doctors' decisions on initial hospital admissions may affect readmission rates

2011-05-13

Researchers compared hospitalization rates and rehospitalization rates of patients admitted for heart attack and for heart failure. Heart attack admissions are considered non-discretionary, whereas, heart failure admissions are considered more discretionary. Hospitalization after heart attack is mandated in treatment guidelines, so physicians have little or no room for discretionary decisions. Researchers examined Medicare claims data in 306 regions between 2007 and 2009. The results showed no relationship between heart attack hospitalization rates and readmission rates. ...

Study finds pigs susceptible to virulent ebolavirus can transmit the virus to other animals

2011-05-13

[EMBARGOED FOR MAY 13, 2011] Canadian investigators have shown that a species of ebolavirus from Zaire that is highly virulent in humans can replicate in pigs, cause disease, and be transmitted to animals previously unexposed to the virus. The findings are published in The Journal of Infectious Diseases and are now available online. (Please see below for a link to the embargoed study online.) In order to prevent human outbreaks of Ebola hemorrhagic fever, it is important to identify animal species that replicate and transmit the virus to other animals and, potentially, ...

Be specific: Perceived media bias can lead to political action

2011-05-13

Politicians should be careful when they rail against mainstream news media. A study from North Carolina State University shows that perceived bias of media outlets can lead to increased political engagement – but only on specific issues. When there is a general perception of bias in the news media it actually results in increased apathy among citizens. "With this study, we wanted to see whether people's perception of media bias affected their political participation, beyond voting," says Dr. Andrew Binder, an assistant professor of communication at NC State and co-author ...

A giant interneuron for sparse coding

2011-05-13

The brain is a coding machine: it translates physical inputs from the world into visual, olfactory, auditory, tactile perceptions via the mysterious language of its nerve cells and the networks which they form. Neural codes could in principle take many forms, but in regions forming bottlenecks for information flow (e.g., the optic nerve) or in areas important for memory, sparse codes are highly desirable. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Brain Research in Frankfurt have now discovered a single neuron in the brain of locusts that enables the adaptive regulation ...

Accenture, CSC, and Other World-Class Companies Are Winners at the 12th Annual CorpU Awards for Corporate Learning Organizations

2011-05-13

The Corporate University Xchange Awards for Excellence and Innovation in Corporate Learning salute corporate and government learning organizations that create exciting, impactful programs resulting in measurable improvements in employee and business performance. Since 1999, these independently judged awards have set the standard for corporate learning. "These corporate learning organizations are key to the realization of business strategy," said Peter McAteer, CEO of CorpU. "Winning these awards is an added indicator of their success." The presentations ...

Livestock also suffer traffic accidents during transport

2011-05-13

A Spanish study has analysed traffic accidents involving cattle being transported for human consumption in the country for the first time. Despite the "relatively" low mortality rate, animals suffer high-risk situations that cause pain and stress. The scientists say that specific protocols for action are needed with regard to these accidents, and to prepare the emergency services to deal with them. Most of the 86 lorry accidents identified from 2000 to 2009 in Spain involved the transportation of pigs (57%), followed by cattle (30%), chickens (8%), and sheep (5%). Despite ...

KnovialSALES - Free Mobile Sales CRM for Everyone!

2011-05-13

The key to increasing sales and overall profitability is to quickly have all of your sales information available at the touch of a finger. Our new iPhone/iPad sales CRM Tool will bring all the information you need to your sales staff and managers. Rather than waiting for a team to assemble reports, the reports can be instantly delivered to your via the CRM Tool. Increase sales and watch your profitability soar when your staff has access to the CRM Tool. Your customers are everything to your business. Your business would not exist without them, and the best way to make ...

Sensors that can stretch

2011-05-13

This release is available in German. The car is racing far too fast toward the tail end of a traffic jam – a crash is inevitable. The inflated airbag can protect the car's occupants. But if the person in the passenger seat is leaning too far forward, perhaps looking for something in a bag in the foot space, the force of the airbag can cause injury. Researchers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Silicate Research ISC in Würzburg have now developed sensors that can help prevent such scenarios. These sensors can be integrated into the car seat, for example, where they ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

New drug-eluting balloon may be as safe and effective as conventional metal stents for repeat percutaneous coronary interventions

Effectiveness and cost-effectiveness of automated external defibrillators in private homes

University of Phoenix College of Social and Behavioral Sciences leadership publishes white paper on trauma-informed education

Identifying the best high-biomass sorghum hybrids based on biomass yield potential and feedstock quality affected by nitrogen fertility management under various environments