According to the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), a division of the National Institutes of Health, the side effects associated with chiropractic care largely depend on the type of chiropractic treatment used. Common side effects include muscle and joint stiffness, mild bruising and temporary headaches. NCCAM states that the possibility of serious complications, such as stroke, is extremely low.
Muscle & Joint Stiffness
It's not unusual for a patient to feel mild muscle and joint stiffness after visiting a chiropractor, especially if the chiropractor uses manual therapies--such as trigger point therapy or myofascial release techniques--to treat symptomatic complaints. First-time chiropractic patients should understand that, after treatment, they may feel as though they have just participated in a strenuous workout after a long period of sedentary living. To improve intersegmental spinal joint ranges of motion, most chiropractors will perform spinal manipulation, also known chiropractic manipulative therapy (CMT). Often, chiropractors mobilize joints that have not moved properly in years, which can cause some initial stiffness, but is often followed by improved joint ranges of motion. According to a 1997 study by C. Leboeuf-Yde and colleagues at the Nordic Institute for Chiropractic and Clinical Biomechanics, published in the "Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics," the side effects of CMT are common and benign and typically arise and disappear shortly after treatment. The researchers note that local discomfort--such as muscle and joint stiffness--in the area of treatment is the most common side effect associated with chiropractic care.
Mild Bruising
Mild bruising is a relatively common side effect of chiropractic care, especially among patients receiving extensive manual therapies for soft tissue injuries or lesions. The goal of soft tissue techniques is to reduce patients' pain or scar tissue and improve their range of motion. Most manual therapies are hands-on therapies, meaning that the patients tissues--muscle, tendons, ligaments and fascia--are being mobilized by the doctor's hands or tools. According to the American Cancer Society, cancer patients undergoing myofascial release treatments--a manual medicine technique that targets the body's fascia, a system of connective tissue that runs throughout the body--may be susceptible to easy bruising, especially if their platelet count is low or they're taking blood-thinning medication. However, it's not unusual for most people to experience some degree of bruising or redness from manual therapies.
Temporary Headache
It's not uncommon for patients to experience a mild headache following chiropractic care, especially if the chiropractor has performed extensive work on the tissues and joints of the cervical spine or neck. Headaches resulting from chiropractic care typically are mild and resolve shortly after treatment. According to a 1997 study by Ola Senstad, D.C. and colleagues, published in the journal "Spine," which used structured interviews with 102 Norwegian chiropractors to collect information about patients' unpleasant physical reactions following CMT, over the course of a maximum of six treatments, 55 percent of patients receiving chiropractic care reported at least one side effect. Of the patients reporting side effects, 12 percent reported a headache following treatment. The researchers of this study note that symptoms rarely began more than 24 hours after treatment, lasted only for a short duration, were never described as severe and did not interfere with the participants' activities of daily living. A chiropractic physician may prescribe a nutritional supplement to help reduce the effects of post-treatment headaches.
References
- National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine: Chiropractic: An Introduction
- "Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics;" Side Effects of Chiropractic Treatment: A Prospective Study; C. Leboeuf-Yde; June 1998
- American Cancer Society: Myofascial Release
- "Spine;" Frequency and Characteristics of Side Effects of Spinal Manipulative Therapy; Ola Senstad, D.C. et al.; February 1997
