Understanding Chiropractic Maintenance Care
We have all heard the complaint against chiropractors, “once you start seeing a chiropractor you have to continue going for the rest of your life”. This is often said by those who have never been to the chiropractor and felt the relief provided. While this complaint is wrong, it is also not entirely incorrect either. In this article we will discuss the differences between acute chiropractic care and maintenance care.
I think it should be said up front that no matter what facet of life you are in and what level your health is, you, as the patient, have complete and utter control of your healthcare decisions. At no point should you feel bullied or scared into receiving care you do not want. That is your right! So to say, “once you start seeing a chiropractor you have to continue going for the rest of your life”, is false. By no means do you have to continue care if you so choose, but as said it is your choice. Most people find such relief from debilitating situations they choose to continue care so they feel better.
What is the difference between acute and maintenance care? The two terms are opposite spectrums when it comes to care. Someone who is in severe pain after picking up the world's heaviest pencil from the floor is in an acute situation. They had a noticeable stimulus causing discomfort leading to a level of disability. These patients require an in-depth examination and treatment plan to best serve their healthcare goals. There will be a specific acute care article soon, but the topic of discussion for this article is more focused on maintenance care and what that may look like.
Maintenance care can sometimes get a bad reputation among the public and this is because some providers have abused the term or they call it “wellness” and use fear-based tactics to scare patients into coming in more often. It is sad, but true. Maintenance care is defined as, “receiving care at regular pre-planned intervals regardless of symptoms…” (1). This “pre-planned” care can look like a lot of different things. For some people maintenance care is being seen every week, while for others it is being seen every six months. It differs person to person because not one person is the same as the next. Our perception of pain and need for care can be influenced by multiple variables like sleep or lack thereof, diet, work activities, stress, etc. Studies are beginning to show what we as a chiropractic profession have known for many years that those who receive maintenance care have fewer flare-ups and less intense flare-ups when they arise (2). I think that should also be pointed out that flare-ups happen to the best of us no matter our efforts. As Frank Sinatra once said, ‘that’s life’. However, maintenance care can and will aid in the overall avoidance of acute situations as is noted in the research.
With all this being said, maintenance care can be beneficial for most people. There is no one cookie-cutter way of doing it and it takes a little trial and error to figure out what works best for each individual person. If you are interested in chiropractic care and maintenance care please don’t hesitate to reach out to us at Orange County Chiropractic. You can call us at 812-936-3000, email us at orangecochiro@gmail.com, or come in and visit us at 8550 W College St. in French Lick, IN.
Eklund, A., Hagberg, J., Jensen, I., Leboeuf-Yde, C., Kongsted, A., Lövgren, P., Jonsson, M., Petersen-Klingberg, J., Calvert, C., & Axén, I. (2020). The Nordic maintenance care program: maintenance care reduces the number of days with pain in acute episodes and increases the length of pain free periods for dysfunctional patients with recurrent and persistent low back pain - a secondary analysis of a pragmatic randomized controlled trial. Chiropractic & manual therapies, 28(1), 19. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12998-020-00309-6
Hjertstrand, J., Palmgren, P. J., Axén, I., & Eklund, A. (2021). The nordic maintenance care program: patient experience of maintenance care-a qualitative study. Chiropractic & manual therapies, 29(1), 28. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12998-021-00388-z
