Fan Friday

This Friday, May 4, Oakland Spine & Rehab will be celebrating Fan Friday. We would love for you to join us and to share your personal success stories about our office. We will be taping patient testimonials to add to our in-office televised health channel. Whether taping your story or simply writing it down, let us know how we have succeeded in helping you to achieve a healthier and happier life.

Those who wish to share a video testimonial will be entered into our iPad3 raffle as well!

As always,
The Staff at Oakland Spine and Rehab

Oakland Spine & Rehabilitation is Proud to Welcome Craig Justin, L. Ac.

We would like to welcome our newest addition, Licensed Acupuncturist, Craig Justin, L. Ac to our diverse staff of experts.

Craig graduated from the Eastern School of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine in 2004, earning a Diplomate of Acupuncture. He obtained a Diplomate of Ayurveda from the New Jersey Institute of Ayurveda in 2011 and has had additional training in Structural Integration and Traditional Chinese Herbology.

Since graduation Craig has worked for some of New Jersey's largest integrated medical facilities practicing and coordinating the use of acupuncture and other Eastern modalities in order to address a host of orthopedic pain and family health related concerns. His extensive experience has enabled him to achieve excellent results for back, neck and joint pain, headaches, migraines, stress and general well-being and health maintenance.

As always, if you, a family member, or a friend is in need of pain relief, Oakland Spine & Rehabilitation is here to help with many different therapies. A referral is the greatest thank-you that our patients can give us!

Let us buy your friend dinner and ease their pain.

Dr. Butler will be hosting a "Pain Free" dinner seminar this Monday, April 23rd. Have your friends, family members or co-workers, who are suffering from stenosis, herniated discs, neuropathy or severe spinal arthritis, join us at Portobello's Banquets for a free gourmet dinner. At this "Pain Free" dinner seminar they will learn about the Butler Spine Program - a revolutionary new treatment that has a 90% success rate. Also, a special offer will be made at the dinner to save them thousands of dollars on the cost of the program.

The free gourmet dinner and "Pain Free" presentation will be held at Portobello's Banquets this Monday, April 23rd at 6:00pm. Please let all of your friends know that help is on the way! Seating is limited, so have them reserve their spot today by calling us at (862) 226-0928.

Weekly Health Update

Mental Attitude: Music and Emotions.
Music can evoke positive emotions, which in turn can lower stress levels. In a survey study, positive emotions were experienced more often and more intensively in connection with music listening. The more the participants liked the music, the less stress they experienced. To get the positive effects of music, you have to listen to music you like.
University of Gothenburg, March 2012
Health Alert: Slow Brain Growth In Babies Linked To Depression During Pregnancy!
Many women experience a roller coaster of emotions during pregnancy: stress, confusion, fear, sadness and depression. Babies whose mothers are depressed during pregnancy have a greater chance of growing slower, resulting in the head and body showing retarded growth. Also, antidepressants increase the risk of slow growth in the development of babies' brains.
Archives of General Psychiatry, March 2012
Diet: High-Fat Diets Increase Colon Cancer Risk.
Eating too much fat and sugar puts a person at greater risk for colon cancer and obesity. In normal tissue from patients with colon cancer, they found that epigenetic marks on genes involved in breaking down carbohydrates, lipids and amino acids (abundant in the fatty Western diet) appeared to have been retrained. Epigenetic marks are chemical modifications that serve as on/off switches for many genes. These foods are changing the methylation patterns on a person's insulin genes so that they express differently, pumping out more insulin than the body requires.
Cancer Prevention Research, March 2012
Exercise: Exercise Linked To Change In DNA.
Exercise almost immediately alters DNA in healthy but inactive men and women. Although the genetic makeup is not altered, DNA molecules change structurally and chemically when a person exercises. One researcher noted, "Our muscles are really plastic. We often say 'You are what you eat.' Well, muscle adapts to what you do. If you don't use it, you lost it and this is one of the mechanisms that allow that to happen."
Cell Metabolism, March 2012
Chiropractic: Is Chiropractic Safe? YES.
Chiropractic's non-surgical, drug-free approach to health places it among the safest of all health care practices. Remember, chiropractic takes nothing out of the body and puts nothing in. As a result, chiropractors enjoy one of the lowest malpractice rates of all health care professionals.
Massachusetts Chiropractic Association
Wellness/Prevention: How Much Selenium?
While too much selenium may result in the development of type 2 diabetes, high selenium intake has been shown to protect against certain cancers, such as lung, colorectal, bladder, and prostate cancer. It also increases male fertility and has positive effects on antiviral function. Low selenium intake has been linked to memory and brain decline, low immune system quality, and a greater risk of death.
The Lancet, March 2012

Enter to Win an iPad 3!

Due to an outstanding number of patient referrals last month, Dr. Butler decided to give away TWO iPads as a thank you, instead of one! Our March winners, Kevin M. and Butch P. are pictured above.

This month's give-away, by popular demand, will be the NEW iPad 3! Our referral give-away allows you to let your friends and family know how we have improved your life through treatment while receiving an entry into our "Change the World" Raffle Drum. The more friends and family members you refer, the more entries you receive! When you refer in 1 friend you will get 1 entry card. If you refer in 2 friends you will get an additional 5 entries. If you refer in 3 or more people you will get 10 entries per person!!

We are happy to announce that in addition to Chiropractic Care, Physical Therapy, Class IV Deep Tissue Laser and Decompression Therapy, we will now be offering Acupuncture. These many different therapies allow us treat a wide range of conditions such as scoliosis, herniated discs, neuropathy, fibromyalgia, neck and back pain, headaches, and more. Have your loved ones call to set up a consultation today!

What Does This Have To Do With YOUR Back Or Neck Pain?

It is estimated that most people will suffer with back and/or neck pain at one time during their lifetime. Chiropractic treatment for back pain is well-documented in literature and now a new study has come out in the Annals of Internal Medicine that states spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) and home exercise are more effective than medication for neck pain.

You can read all about this study in the lead story of this month’s newsletter.

Since Chiropractors are experts in SMT (commonly called adjustments), it makes sense to get a Chiropractic evaluation if you have neck pain. The evaluation is simple and you may discover a way to relieve your pain.

Here’s something important if you suffer from headaches. Many headaches are caused by the structures in your neck. This type of headache is called a cervicogenic headache.

With this type of headache, the pain is referred to the head from the boney structures or soft tissue of the neck and can often mimic other types of headaches. Many cervicogenic headaches cause pain in the back of the head and also behind the eyes or temple region.

With this type of headache, you may also have a stiff neck, and certain neck movements may bring on the headache and make it worse.

For years, Chiropractors have noticed that patients would come in for a stiff neck or neck pain… and after helping with the neck pain… patients would say their headaches were gone too!

It is great to live in a time when research is catching up to what so many Chiropractors have known for so long. Now that we are working hand in hand with medical doctors, more patients are getting helped than ever before.

If you have neck pain, a stiff neck or suffer with headaches, give us a call and set up an evaluation. Getting relief may be easier than you think.

You can call us with any other questions you have, as well. We are always here to help you, with anything we can.

Low Back Pain: Is It My Low Back Or My Hip?

When patients present with low back pain, it is not uncommon for pain to arise from areas other than the low back, such as the hip. There are many tissues in the low back and hip region that are susceptible to injury with have overlapping pain pathways that often make it challenging to isolate the truly injured area. Hip pain can present in many different ways.

When considering the anatomy of the low back (lumbar spine) and hip, and the nerves that innervate the hip come from the low back, it’s no wonder that differentiating between the two conditions is often difficult. Complaints may include the inside, outside, front or back of the thigh, the knee, the buttocks, the sacroiliac joint, or the low back and yet, the hip may truly be the pain generator with any of these presentations. To make diagnosis even more complex, the hip pain patient may present one day with what appears to be sciatic nerve pain (that is, pain shooting down the back of the leg to the knee if mild or, to the foot if more severe) but the next time, with only groin pain. When pain radiates down a leg, the almost automatic impression by both the patient and the health care provider is, “…it’s a pinched nerve.” But again, it could be the hip and NOT a pinched nerve that is creating the leg pain pattern. Throwing yet another wrench in the works is the fact that a patient can have more than one condition at the same time. So, they truly MAY simultaneously have BOTH a low back problem AND a hip problem. In fact, its actually unusual to x-ray the low back of a hip pain patient without seeing some low back condition(s) like degenerative disk disease, osteoarthritis (spurs off the vertebrae), or combination of these. So, how do we differentiate between hip vs. low back pain when it is common for both low back and hip pain to often coincide?

During our history, we often ask the question, “…what activities make your pain worse?” If the patient replies that weight bearing activities like standing, walking, getting up from sitting, etc., provoke the pain (and they point to the front or side of the hip), a hip related diagnosis is favored but, it STILL may be arising from the low back or both! If they say, “…crossing my right leg over the other hurts in my groin,” that’s getting more hip pain specific as hip rotation is frequently lost before the forward flexion motion. When we ask the hip pain patient to point to the area of greatest discomfort, they usually point to the front of the hip or groin, and less often to the inner and/or anterior thigh or knee. Non-weight bearing positions like sitting or lying are almost always immediately pain relieving. When there is arthritis in the hip, motion loss is often reported and may include a shorter walking stride and pain usually gets worse the longer these patients are on their feet. Initiating motion often hurts, sometimes even in bed when rolling over. During the chiropractic examination, with the patient lying on the back with the knee and hip both bent 90˚, moving the bent knee outwards or inwards will almost always reproduce hip/groin area pain. Pulling on or, applying traction to the affected leg usually, “…feels good.” Knee & ankle reflexes and sensation are normal but muscle strength may be weak due to pain. Bending the low back into different positions does not reproduce pain if the pain is only coming from the hip. Though challenging sometimes, we are well trained to be able to differentiate between hip and low back pain and will treat both areas when it is appropriate.

We realize you have a choice in who you choose to provide your healthcare services. If you, a friend or family member requires care for low back pain, we sincerely appreciate the trust and confidence shown by choosing our services and look forward in serving you and your family presently and, in the future.

Whiplash: Cervical Traction

Whiplash injuries include damage to the soft tissues of the neck such as muscles, tendons, ligaments, and myofascial tissues. The degree of injury is typically graded on a 1-3 scale from least to most tissue damaged, respectively. A grade 1 sprain (ligament injury) or strain (muscle or muscle tendon injury) includes minimal tissue disruption or tearing while grade 3 sprains and strains include significant tissue tearing and subsequently longer healing times with greater chance of long-term residual problems. More severe whiplash injuries can result in fracture but those types of injuries are not indicated for traction forms of therapy until after the fracture heals and stability is restored to the neck. So, the question is, what role does cervical traction play in the management of neck pain associated with whiplash?

In whiplash injuries, when it feels good to the patient to have someone pull on their neck, that person is a candidate for cervical traction. The amount of weight or traction force and length of time are based on patient comfort and are highly variable. Therefore, it is important to start with a low enough weight so injury to the patient from the traction therapy is avoided. Typically, 5#/15 minutes is a safe starting point, gradually increasing the weight to a maximum tolerated level.

Many insurance companies, based on the published literature regarding cervical traction, regard it as a “medically necessary” form of treatment and hence, a covered service. There are many different cervical traction devices available for home use of which the over-the-door traction unit is typically the least expensive and in some cases mandated prior to insurance allowance for a more expensive pneumatic cervical traction device. Unless there are reasons that over-the-door traction is not tolerated such as jaw pain (due to the chin strap pressure), this approach is commonly utilized. This device includes a water bag that is calibrated for water weight and can be done multiple times a day, depending on each case. There is also a collar-type of traction unit which allows the patient to move around rather than sit in one place. However, the amount of weight is better regulated with the water bag/sitting type. There are laying down types of neck traction which can also be regulated accurately for weight. These tend to be more expensive and insurance companies may require use of the less expensive over the door type first, unless there is a medical reason that a chin strap is not tolerated. Below are pictures of the different types of units available.

We realize you have a choice in where you choose your healthcare services. If you, a friend or family member requires care for whiplash, we sincerely appreciate the trust and confidence shown by choosing our services and look forward in serving you and your family presently and, in the future.

Neck Pain: Manipulation vs. Other Treatments?

Mechanical neck pain affects an estimated 70% of people at some point in their lives. Many different treatment approaches are available for neck pain, making it very difficult for those suffering from neck pain to know which treatment approach(es) to choose. Research in this topic has revealed some very interesting information that places chiropractic and spinal manipulation in a VERY STRONG POSITION – in fact, at the TOP OF THE HEAP!

One such study looked at benefits of spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) in patients with acute and subacute neck pain. This study compared three study groups: 1. SMT only, 2. medication only, and 3. Home exercise and advice (HEA). This study randomized 272 neck pain patients suffering from neck pain for 2 to 12 weeks into a 12 week treatment period using 1 of the 3 treatment approaches tracking the results with the participant-rated pain as the primary treatment outcome measure. Secondary outcome data was obtained from other approaches. The results showed that the group treated with SMT, “…had a statistically significant advantage over medication after 8, 12, 26 and 52 weeks. HEA also had a statistical advantage over medication. Lastly, similar benefits were calculated between the SMT and exercise group. The conclusions support SMT and exercise/advise to be the choice over medication for acute and subacute neck pain patients. Regarding exercise, a similar study showed that “high-dosed supervised strengthening exercise” with and without SMT, was superior to a “low dose home mobilization exercise and advice group at 4, 12, 26, and 52 weeks.”

Regarding chronic neck pain patients (that means pain that has been present for greater than 3 months), this study evaluated the changes that occurred in 191 patients. These patients were randomized to 11 weeks of 1 of 3 treatment groups and evaluated at 3, 6, 12, & 24 months after treatment. The 3 treatment options included: 1. Spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) only, 2. SMT with low-tech neck exercises, or, 3. A form of exercise using a MedX rehab machine. The results support the highest level of patient satisfaction was found in the 2nd group (SMT with low-tech exercise), suggesting that when patients present for treatment, spinal manipulation with low-tech exercises results in the most satisfied patient. These findings are important as this study evaluated the LONG-TERM benefits in patients who have had neck pain for a long time (i.e., “chronic”), where most studies only look at the short-term benefits.

Similar conclusions were reported from perhaps the largest scale study on neck pain based on research from 1980 to 2006 on the use, effectiveness and safety of noninvasive treatment approaches for neck pain and associated disorders. Their review of over 350 articles supported manual therapy (manipulation and mobilization) and supervised exercise to again, SHINE in their conclusions.

What is important is that ALL these studies support what chiropractors do: manipulate the neck and give supervised exercises! So, what are you waiting for? SPREAD THE WORD to everyone that you know who has neck pain – CHIROPRACTIC MAY BE THE BEST CHOICE!!!

We realize that you have a choice in where you choose your healthcare services. If you, a friend or family member requires care for neck pain, we sincerely appreciate the trust and confidence shown by choosing our services and look forward in serving you and your family presently and, in the future.

Weekly Health Update

Mental Attitude: The Brain, Aggression & The Media.
Research over the past few decades has shown that viewing physical violence in the media can increase aggression in adults and children. A new study has also found that onscreen relational aggression (including social exclusion, gossip and emotional bullying) may prime the brain for aggression.
Aggressive Behavior, March 2012

Health Alert: Don't Be Like A Brit?
Britons are dying early because of ignorance and denial of cancer symptoms. If Britain matched the best cancer survival rates in Europe, 11,500 fewer people would die every year. Matching just the European average would save 6,000-7,000 lives every year. Britain's poor record in early diagnosis is to blame. A survey asked Britons about warning signs and symptoms of cancer. 75% failed to mention pain, coughing, bladder and bowel problems; 66% failed to list bleeding; and only 25% mentioned weight loss or mole changes. 37% who spotted early signs of cancer said they may delay getting checked because they worried about the result. 37% said they may delay getting symptoms checked because it would be difficult to make an appointment to see their GP. 25% said it might be a waste of their doctor's time.
Cancer Research, 2012

Diet: Added Sugar, Obesity And Diabetes.
Fructose intake from added sugar is linked with the epidemic rise in obesity, metabolic syndrome and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Metabolic syndrome is a group of risk factors that raises a person's risk for diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and other health problems. Metabolic syndrome currently affects 25% of Americans. If you compared two diets of similar calorie intake (more fructose vs. more starch), the higher fructose diet will lead to greater accumulation of fat around organs and higher insulin resistance.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, March 2012

Exercise: Take A Break From Sitting.
Interrupting prolonged periods of sitting with regular, two-minute breaks of light or moderate intensity activity, like walking, may be good for overweight and obese people's health. Such activity helps their bodies keep glucose and insulin levels under control after consuming a high calorie meal.
Diabetes Care, March 2012

Chiropractic: Tennis Anyone?
"A Chiropractor was instrumental in putting my body back together...alternative therapies will play a bigger role in our lives. After all, people like what works"
~ Martina Navratilova - former WTA World No. 1 and 9x Wimbledon Singles Champion

Wellness/Prevention: Vitamin D And Fractures.
Vitamin D intake can lower stress fracture risk in girls, especially in regards to injuries caused by high impact activities. There was no evidence that calcium and dairy intakes were protective against developing a stress fracture or that soda intake was predictive of an increased risk of stress fracture or confounded the association between dairy, calcium or vitamin D intakes and fracture risk.Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, March 201

Fibromyalgia: What Resources are Available?

Fibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic condition that impacts its victims in every aspect of their lives. The day has to be planned around how one might feel at certain times of the day and is always in the foreground of a FM victim’s mind. Many patients who present for treatment of FM ask us about what resources are available for them and therefore, this is the subject of this month’s Health Update.

The National Fibromyalgia Association (NFA) was founded in 1997 in Orange, California and has become the largest nonprofit (501c3) FM specific organization. The initial goal was to help patients with FM find doctors who were willing to treat and manage FM patients as this was a BIG CHALLENGE and remains an important focus of the organization today. The mission of the NFA is to improve the quality of life for the FM patient and to find a team who embraces that premise by creating and offering many programs, high profile media campaigns, and providing training to support group leaders across the country. Their philosophy is to, “…empower patients and to provide them with a new level of hope for the future.” To that effect, the NFA evolved to include the development of an educational web site, the publication of an international magazine (“Fibromyalgia AWARE”), as well as developing medical education programs. The NFA website includes a “Resource” tab at the their homepage that leads to a listing of many great options that can be accessed at the click of a button.

http://fmaware.org/PageServer4a00.html?pagename=resources_directory

Here is an interesting place for health care providers and patients with FM to review research articles on FM from 1981 to 2002, with over 300 references available:

http://www.myalgia.com/refs%2081%20to%200302.htm

Another good resource for information on FM is the New York Times Health Guide:

http://health.nytimes.com/health/guides/disease/fibromyalgia/resources.html

There are many places one can acquire information about FM. The list provided here barely scratches the surface. Simply google “fibromyalgia resources” to find almost anything you’ll need.

If you, a friend or family member requires care for FM, we sincerely appreciate the trust and confidence shown by choosing our services!

Carpal Tunnel: Chiropractic Management

Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS) is caused by pinching of the median nerve inside the carpal tunnel in the wrist resulting numbness, tingling, and sometimes pain into the hand affecting the index, 3rd, and thumb-side of the 4th finger. Grip strength weakness may occur (usually later in the process), making dropping of items and fine motor activities, like buttoning shirts, challenging. There are many approaches to the treatment of CTS of which surgical release of the transverse carpal ligament is the most common and usually recommended by most primary care physicians when tests support the presence of CTS. But, there are alternative treatment approaches that should be utilized first because the recovery time is less lengthy and grip weakness often occurs post-surgically with approximately a 30% loss of strength. Moreover, the CTS sufferer will lose minimal or no work time when treated with chiropractic approaches, compared to a 2 to 6 week work loss time after surgery, if there are no complications. Bottom line, there are no serious side effects to chiropractic management of CTS so, why wouldn't you try that first since there are potential side effects to the surgical approach?

So, what can you expect when you present for chiropractic management of CTS?

The history process includes how the condition started ("mechanism of injury"), the date of onset, activities that make the condition better and worse, the quality of symptoms, the location of symptoms, the severity (0-10 scale usually), and when the condition is worse (such as night time when sleeping). There are special questionnaires that ask about symptom severity and function loss which are scored and used to track progress during treatment. A pain diagram is completed by the patient that illustrates where the patient has pain, numbness or other symptoms on a map of the body. This is important as frequently in CTS, there are areas in the neck, shoulder, arm as well as the wrist and hand that are present in patients with CTS and successful management of CTS depends on treating ALL areas involved, NOT just the wrist/hand.

The examination of the CTS patient includes observing posture for a forward head position, protracted or rolled forward shoulders, muscle bulk of the arms, and if there is any abnormal spinal curvature or head tilt. The skin is also inspected for lesions, rashes, discoloration, swelling and hair loss. Next is palpation where we determine if there are any subluxations (vertebral and/or extremity joint misalignments) and/or trigger points in muscles including the neck, shoulders, arms and hands. Orthopedic tests are performed where we put the neck, shoulder, arm and hand in various positions to see if the symptoms of CTS change. These tests give us clues as to which tissues are contributing to the CTS symptoms. For example, applying thumb pressure over the carpal tunnel will often reproduce the CTS symptoms of numbness and/or pain into the index, 3rd, and thumb half of the 4th finger. When we find multiple tests that reproduce the CTS symptoms, we will know what areas require treatment as frequently, we will find a significant contribution to the CTS symptoms are coming from the neck, shoulder, and/or forearm, NOT JUST the wrist. This is why, in some cases, patients may not have a satisfying result after CTS surgery.

The treatment the CTS patient may expect at the chiropractic office includes manipulation of the neck, shoulder, elbow, wrist and hand. We will often perform muscle release techniques where pressure is applied into the muscles during stretch as well as friction massage. The use of a wrist "cock-up" splint at night is very helpful to reduce the frequency of waking up at night due to hand/finger numbness. Various physical therapy modalities such as low level laser therapy, electrical stimulation, pulsed magnetic stimulation, ultrasound, and others can also be helpful. Also, we give exercises that are extremely helpful and we frequently discuss job modifications to helps to reduce the repetitive strain that causes and can prolong the condition.

We realize you have a choice in who you consider for your health care provision and we sincerely appreciate your trust in choosing our service for those needs. If you, a friend or family member require care for CTS, we would be honored to render our services.

Don't Let The Long Weekend Spoil Your Results!

Our office will be closed on Friday, April 6th in observance of Good Friday and Passover.

To accommodate any patients usually scheduled on Friday, the office will be open on Thursday, April 5th for chiropractic and physical therapy appointments.

To often, patients fall behind in their treatment because they miss appointments and do not make them up. This may cause the symptoms or pain to require more time to get better. In order to avoid this mistake, please call our front desk to make an appointment for Thursday, April 5th or to make up any other missed appointments.

Wishing you a safe and healthy holiday!

As always,
The Staff at Oakland Spine and Rehab

Weekly Health Update

Mental Attitude: Memory and Stress.
Anyone who has ever experienced chronic stress knows it can take a toll on both your emotions and your ability to think clearly. Researchers have discovered a neural mechanism that directly links repeated stress with impaired memory. This study also provides critical insight into why stress responses can act as a trigger for mental illnesses.
Child Development, Feb 2012

Health Alert: Sleeping Pill Dangers!
Sleeping pill sales increased by 23% from 2006-2010 and generated about $2 billion in annual sales. Sleeping pills (including Ambien and Restoril) are linked to a 4.6 times higher risk of death and a significant increase in cancer. Among patients who were prescribed just 1-18 sleeping pills per year, the risk of death was 3.6 times higher. Rates of new cancers were 35% higher among patients who were prescribed at least 132 doses a year, compared with those who did not receive prescriptions.
Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, Feb 2012

Diet: Rosemary Essential Oil On My Mind?
Blood levels of a rosemary oil component correlate with improved cognitive performance. Results indicate, for the first time in human subjects, that concentration of 1,8-cineole in the blood is related to an individual's cognitive performance, with higher concentrations resulting in improved performance. Both speed and accuracy were improved, suggesting that the relationship is not describing a speed-accuracy trade off.
Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons, Feb 2012

Exercise: Yoga And Stress.
Yoga may be effective for stress-related psychological and medical conditions such as depression, anxiety, high blood pressure and cardiac disease. The theory could be used to develop specific mind-body practices for the prevention and treatment of these conditions in conjunction with standard treatments.
New England Journal of Medicine, Feb 2012

Chiropractic: Safety of Adjusting.
No one pays closer attention to injury statistics than Malpractice Insurance carriers. Scott Haldeman, M.D., D.C. reviewed malpractice claims records for a 10-year period between 1988 and 1997. In reviewing 134.5 million chiropractic adjustments, there were 23 cases of stroke or vertebral artery dissection. 10 of these had complicating factors such as high blood pressure, use of oral contraceptives, or a history of smoking, all associated with vascular disease. The incidence of stroke or vertebral artery dissection following neck adjustments was one per 5.85 million. On average, a chiropractor would have to work for 1430 years (48 full chiropractic careers) for this to happen once! Driving to the office is probably more dangerous.
Canadian Medical Association Journal, 2001

Wellness/Prevention: Irregular Heartbeat?
An irregular heartbeat, atrial fibrillation, is a strong predictor of cognitive decline and the loss of independence in daily activities in older people at risk of cardiovascular disease. This is just another good reason to maintain your heart health and get checked to prevent heart problems.Canadian Medical Association Journal, March 2012