How well do you understand your spine and what it requires?
Does your doctor? Does your insurer (ie,
Medicare)? Hollstrom & Associates Inc prides itself on understanding the
spine of each of our Largo chiropractic patients. Your Largo
chiropractor examines your low back when there is
low back pain, your neck when there’s neck pain, your neck when there
is arm pain, your low back when there is
leg pain, your thoracic spine when there is thoracic
(and even neck and low back) pain. Your chiropractor knows your
spine. Sadly, sometimes your insurer doesn’t.
The chiropractic profession endeavors to deliver
the research to the insurers to pay for essential treatment for
your spine while your Largo chiropractor strives
to communicate clearly with your insurer for your optimal
care and with you for your optimal clinical outcome: relief of
pain.
YOUR INSURER
Administrators’ data does not tell the entire
story about back pain. In one study that compared
self-reported low back pain to data collected by
health groups that track low back pain via billing codes
and the like found that these two sources
do not agree. Self-reported data regarding low back
pain (21.2%) was higher than administration’s data (10.2%).
Characteristics of low back pain patients founded on data varied
in several areas – sex, health/behavior traits, and health care use
– leading to an underestimated prevalence of low back pain. (1)
Hollstrom & Associates Inc knows how prevalent back pain is and how it affects our back
pain patients like you.
YOUR BACK PAIN
In a study that specifically examined one influence on back pain - spinal stiffness - from the subjective
patient angle and the objective testing angle found
that these two measures do not correlate well either. At least in
this comparison, actual input was from people: patients filling out questionnaires and doctors who filled out
objective tests. These findings directed the researchers to notice
that while these two sources do not correlate well, each is
important in the whole general picture of the
patient’s condition and care. (2) Your Largo chiropractor uses this evidence to care for your spine.
YOUR CHIROPRACTOR
Your Largo chiropractor is an evidence-based
chiropractor. Evidence guides the spine relief treatment plan at
Hollstrom & Associates Inc. A fascinating study of chiropractic
students revealed how as each year of school passed the students became
less vitalistic and more evidence-based. (3) After 7 or so years in school,
your chiropractor is ready to take care of Largo
back pain and neck pain patients. The evidence of useful chiropractic
spine care keeps expanding! Researchers write today of
how the use of non-pharmacological pain management may inhibit
unnecessary use of opioids. Chiropractic is one such non-drug
pain management offering. In a study of 101,221 spine pain patients, 1.55 to 2.03 times more non-chiropractic
patients got an opioid prescription than chiropractic patients. (4)
Further, Medicare beneficiary patients who use chiropractic are shown
to have higher clinical outcomes (faster recovery, fewer back
surgeries a year later, less opioid-linked
disability, fewer traumatic falls and injuries, slower declines in activities
of daily living and disability over time) at less expense (fewer
medical doctors visits for low back pain, less opioid expense, less back-surgery
cost) with higher levels of satisfaction. (5) These aren’t
bad trade-offs for the Medicare cost system and for the Medicare patient.
CONTACT Hollstrom & Associates Inc
Listen to this PODCAST
by Dr. Lee Hazen and Cheri Hazen RN on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr.
Michael Johnson describing how non-pharmacological relieving
treatment of back pain using the Cox® Technic System of Spinal
Pain Management and other non-drug approaches help.
Make a non-surgical Largo
chiropractic care visit with Hollstrom & Associates Inc. Your Largo chiropractor knows
your spine well and how to relieve it of pain: neck pain, arm pain, low back
pain or leg pain.