Opioids. Back Pain. Treatment Options. Chiropractic has a role
in managing and relieving pain that shouldn’t be ignored.
Primary care physicians don’t
feel much confidence treating
musculoskeletal pain. (1) Family practitioners are the leading
prescribers of opioids. (2) Meanwhile, who treats 40% of
pain patients? Chiropractors! (1) Your Colorado Springs chiropractor at The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR
treats many pain patients and eases plenty of Colorado Springs back pain often exclusive of opioids.
STATISTICS ON OPIOIDS FOR PAIN
The following stats are based
on a huge study of 478,981 freshly diagnosed, “opiate-naïve”
patients who begin utilizing opiates for pain relief. (2)
- 40.4% of pain patients accepted
opioid prescriptions initially within a year of pain but only 4% met the requirement for
long-term use.
- Family practice doctors are the most common
first prescribers of opiates for pain whose risk of prescribing these early in
the pain process is 24.4% while those patients then have a 2% risk of long-term,
continued opiate use.
- Patients who look for care from emergency
medicine doctors (43.1%) or urgent care facility (40.8%) are most
certainly to be prescribed opiates early in their pain cycle.
- Patients diagnosed initially by a pain
management doctor or physical medicine and rehab provider have a
higher risk of long-term opioid use by 6.7% and 3.4%, respectively.
The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR welcomes pain patients to seek
Colorado Springs chiropractic care sooner than later!
PHYSICIANS WHO TREAT PAIN
Primary care physicians (52%), pain physicians (2%),
chiropractors (40%), acupuncturists (7%) care for
chronic pain patients. Primary care physicians are the least probable
physicians to feel confident managing musculoskeletal and neuropathic
pain. (1) Chiropractors like yours at The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR confidently use
non-drug management and/or co-management with other healthcare
personnel for the pain relief and pain control for Colorado Springs back
pain patients.
CHIROPRACTIC’S PLACE IN PAIN CARE
The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR ponders why
chiropractors aren’t more readily thought of
in the process for Colorado Springs pain relief, especially
Colorado Springs back pain relief. Chiropractic services include
spinal manipulation (one of the top recommended types
of care for back pain by the American Pain Society and the American College of
Physicians (3)), exercise, and nutrition. What prevents some
medical doctors from considering nutrition? A recent article states the reason
in its title: “Nutrition: Push For Doctors To Learn Nutrition: Many Graduate
Without Training.” It also shares that patients believe
their medical doctor understands nutrition. (4) And that is ok if
healthcare professionals coordinated care sharing their expertise, recognizing that each
has a role in the care of the pain patient and has the best interest
of the patient at heart. Chiropractors have expertise in non-surgical and non-drug care of pain, back
pain, and spine pain.
COORDINATING CARE
Knowing that a healthcare provider’s
profession effects his/her treatment recommendations,
guidelines for Colorado Springs back pain patient care are established
to try to apply the expertise maximally.
Interdisciplinary care challenges differences among professions and their
recommendation standards so that a patient receives a consistent
therapy message with current treatment guidelines. Activity messages
do differ by profession though: nurses were more restrictive in
their recommendations of activity; physicians were more in line
with guidelines; physiotherapists recommended much more activity but less work
activity than physicians. (5) The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR collaborates with other
local Colorado Springs healthcare providers for patient care, valuing
their expertise and contribution to Colorado Springs
back pain patients’ return to activities of daily living that make each day better.
CONTACT The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR
Schedule a Colorado Springs chiropractic appointment with
The Chiropractic TRUhealthDR for interdisciplinary care of your pain. Your
Colorado Springs chiropractor is willing and able to
work with fellow Colorado Springs healthcare providers and to offer you options on how to manage your back pain beyond and/or
alongside opioid drug care.