We have a new massage therapist at Bronson Chiropractic. Her name is Crystal Reyes and the patients love her. She is great in performing Deep Tissue, Swedish and Pregnancy massage. She also is great at Sea Salt massages. We want everybody to try her out and you’ll think she’s great as well. Please call our office and schedule an appointment with Crystal today!

Dr. Bronson is introducing new chiropractic techniques he recently gained in a continuing education seminar on The Structural Management Program. Dr. Bronson received instruction on how to perform a complete biomechanical exam. The seminar was sponsored by Foot Levelers, Inc. and taught by a chiropractor, Dr. Tim Maggs, known for his expertise in the field. Dr. Bronson welcomes new patients to Bronson Chiropractic for screenings to determine their chiropractic needs. In addition to the methods from this seminar his practice offers a variety of therapies for acute and chronic musculoskeletal conditions and spinal health.

A study published in the Jan. 3, 2012 issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine and widely reported by mainstream media suggests conservative care consisting of either spinal manipulation or home exercise is more effective than over the counter and prescription medication for relieving acute and subacute neck pain. Spinal manipulative therapy was more effective than medication in both the short and long term as was home exercise in the form of self-mobilization of the neck and shoulder joints.

I have to tell the this true story about a patient that I’ve been seeing. His name is Eric and he came to my office with his wife who was a past patient She brought her husband, who is diabetic and insulin dependent. His chief symptoms were lower back pain and left leg pain. He has been under the care of a pain clinic and told me today he has thirty boxes of Cymbalta, that was prescribed for him. He has now quit taking this medication. He has an extensive health history. He had a stroke in May 2010, which left him unable to walk, without the use of a cane. In March , 2011 they installed a spinal cord stimulator at a cost of $396,000.00, to help alleviate his lower back, leg pain and help him walk without the use of a cane. His initial setting for the stimulator was five for the group and the intensity for pain was a ten. After three weeks of care, seven visits total, his group setting is a three and his pain intensity is a four. He is now able to sit without severe pain in his back and leg. The therapy we are giving him is Decompression traction, electrical muscle stimulation, ice, and manipulation to his lower back and hips. This is truly unbelievable pain relief!

We are very pleased to have a new massage therapist join our staff at Bronson Chiropractic. Her name is Devan Scalia and she is here Monday through Saturday to take care of all your massage therapy needs. She offers Hot stone massages, deep tissue, swedish and if you have been involved in a automobile accident, she will help relieve the muscle spasms, pain and stiffness that accompanies these injuries. You don’t have to be a patient of Bronson Chiropractic to enjoy the benefits of massage therapy. Please call our office to schedule your massage today.

Acute low back pain patients demonstrate significantly greater improvement with chiropractic than “usual care.”
With the publication of the chiropractic Hospital-based Interventions Research Outcomes (CHIRO) Study in The Spine Journal, one of the most frequently cited spine research journals in the world, the health community at large may finally appreciate what the chiropractic profession has known for more than a century: Patients with acute mechanical low back pain enjoy significant improvements with chiropractic care, but little to no improvement with the usual care they receive from a family physician.

Published in the December 2010 edition of The Spine Journal, the study found that after 16 weeks of care, patients referred to medical doctors saw almost no improvement in their disability scores, were likely to still be taking pain drugs and saw no benefit with added physical therapy – and yet were unlikely to be referred to a doctor of chiropractic.

The study is “the first reported randomized controlled trial comparing full CPG [clinical practice guidelines]-based treatment, including spinal manipulative therapy administered by chiropractors, to family physician-directed UC [usual care] in the treatment of patients with AM-LBP (acute mechanical low back pain).” (Evidence-based clinical practice guidelines have been established for acute mechanical low back pain in many countries around the world, but sadly most primary care medical doctors don’t follow guidelines.) Researchers discovered that “treatment including CSMT [chiropractic spinal manipulative therapy] is associated with significantly greater improvement in dondition-specific function” than usual care provided by a family physician.

Study Parameters
The Chiropractic Hospital-based Intervention Research Outcomes (CHIRO) initiative was “designed to evaluate the outcomes of spinal pain patient management strategies that involve a component of chiropractic assessment and/or spinal manipulative therapy, administered in a hospital-based spine program outpatient clinic.” They study utilized the CHIRO research framework “to examine the effectiveness of current evidence-based CPG-recommended treatments for patients with AM-LBP pain.”

CPG “study care” (SC) was compared with the usual car (UC) provided by family physicians. Patients were first seen by a spine physician and then randomly assigned to either the SC group or the UC group. Patients in the SC group received acetaminophen, a “progressive walking program” and up to four weeks of lumbar chiropractic spinal manipulative therapy. The manipulative therapy was provided “using conventional side posture, high-velocity, low-amplitude techniques” to the lumbar region only, and only by a chiropractor. Patients assigned to the UC group were referred back to their family physician, who was “simply advised to treat at their own discretion.” Patients in this group received treatment from a “variety of professionals including family physicians, massage therapists, kinesiologists, and/or physiotherapists.”

All care was provided at a hospital based spine program outpatient clinic. The primary outcome measure was the Roland-Morris Disability Questionnaire (RDQ), administered at the beginning of care and at 16 weeks, when acute low back pain is considered to become chronic. The RDQ was also administered at eight and 24 weeks.

Other Important Findings
After 16 weeks, “78% of patients in the UC group were still taking narcotic analgesic medications on either a daily or as needed basis.” (Only 6 percent of this group had received chiropractic care.)

Condition-specific improvement after 16 “clearly favored the SC group, with mean RDQ improvement scores of 2.7 in the SC group compared with only 0.1 in the UC group (p=.003)”

While the difference in the improvement “was not quite significant at 8 weeks,” it was found to be “clearly significant at 24 weeks of follow-up (.004).” Both groups showed improvement in bodily pain and physical functioning, but “patients in the UC group uniquely showed no improvement whatsoever in back-specific functioning (RDQ Scores) throughout the entire study period.”

Inclusion of NSAIDs and manipulation/mobilization performed by physical therapists was no more effective in treating patients than family doctors who offered patients than family doctors who offered patients advice and acetaminophen. The study found: “[T]he addition of NSAIDs and a form of spinal manipulative therapy or mobilization administered by a physiotherapist to the lumbar spine, thoracic spine, sacroiliac joint, pelvis, and hip (compared with a detuned ultrasound as placebo manipulative therapy), to family physician ‘advice’ and acetaminophen were shown to have no clinically worthwhile benefit when compared with advice and acetaminophen alone.”

The study criticizes a 2007 report that had derided the efficacy of spinal manipulation by pointing out that the older report based its conclusions on the outcomes of therapies performed by non-chiropractors. The 2007 study concluded that patients “do not recover more quickly with the addition of diclofenac or spinal manipulative therapy”. By contrast the CHIRO study noted: “Although spinal manipulative therapy is currently administered by many different healthcare professions, including: chiropractors, osteopaths, orthopedic surgeons, family physicians, kinesiologists, naturopaths, and physiotherapists, the levels of training and clinical acumen vary widely. The study design used by Hancock, et al., therefore, differs from our study because [their study] did not use chiropractic spinal manipulation, and current guideline based care does not endorse any forms of spinal manipulation administered by any other practitioners.”

The following article was written by the DC staff of Dynamic Chiropractic: The Chiropractic News Source, Volume 29, number 6.

Phoenix Chiropractic – Dr. Richard Bronson has been treating patients for car accidents and auto accidents for over 29 years in Phoenix, Arizona. He has personally treated over 6,000 automobile accident and car accident cases and is a certified Chiropractic Sports Physician treating shoulder, elbow, knee and hip injuries. He provides professional chiropractic services and massage therapy for individuals of any age. He provides chiropractic care for children, adults, and geriatric patients in need of pain relief in Phoenix, Scottsdale, Glendale and the Metro Phoenix area.

Even a minor automobile accident or car accident can have major effects on your health! When one vehicle is struck by another, the impact of the force can affect both the neck and spine. Whiplash is very common occurrence and injury when the head and neck are thrown or “snapped” back and forth in a quick jolt.

Such a vehicle accident causes injuries to the ligaments, soft tissue, and discs of the neck and spine. Whiplash can cause pain and weakness, stretching, and irritation of the nerves, shoulder and the spinal cord. Whiplash causes headaches, numbness, “pins and needles” in the face, chest, arms or hands, anxiety, neck pain, back pain, ear ringing, dizziness, hearing loss and/or blurred vision. Whiplash is painful and requires quick chiropractic relief! Our clinic offers the latest in Physical Therapy, Decompression Traction Equipment, and X-Ray Equipment. We offer many services to help relieve your pain including but not limited to Massage Therapy, Custom Foot Orthotics, as well as gentle, professional chiropractic care. Our competent staff is willing to help anyone in pain, which is why we accept walk-ins and most insurance plans are accepted and financial hardships are considered regarding co-pays and deductibles.

Wait times are usually minimal, usually less than 15 minutes, and typically appointments can be scheduled the same day you call. For especially urgent cases Dr. Bronson and his staff will make special arrangement to give you the pain relieving treatment you need…even if it means staying after hours. We really go the extra mile for our clients…
Please visit our testimonials page to review actual comments left by our patients from the Phoenix, Scottsdale, Glendale and Surprise over the past 28 years!

Don’t live with pain in your life any longer…Please call Bronson Chiropractic today!