Inflammatory response following a short-term course of chiropractic treatment in subjects with and without chronic low back pain

Richard A Roy; Jean P Boucher; Alain S Comtois

doi:10.1016/j.jcm.2010.06.002

Inflammatory response following a short-term course of chiropractic treatment in subjects with and without chronic low back pain

J Chiropr Med. 2010 Sep;9(3):107-14. doi: 10.1016/j.jcm.2010.06.002.

Authors

Richard A Roy¹, Jean P Boucher, Alain S Comtois

Affiliation

¹ PhD Graduate Student, Département de Kinanthropologie, Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada; Chiropractor, Private Practice, LaSalle, Québec, Canada.

Abstract

Objective: Inflammatory markers interleukin-6 (IL-6) and C-reactive protein (CRP) have not been evaluated in response to a short course of lumbar spinal manipulation. The purpose of this study is to observe the responses of inflammatory markers (IL-6 and CRP) after a series of 9 chiropractic spinal manipulations.

Methods: Twenty-one participants were assigned to a treatment or a control group. Only the treatment group received 9 chiropractic interventions. Pre- and postintervention measures were recorded for blood samples for detection of proinflammatory cytokines IL-6 and CRP.

Results: Mediators of inflammation (IL-6 and high-sensitivity CRP) were modified by the intervention received in the treatment group, and the effect size demonstrated a tendency toward the control group values.

Conclusion: A total of 9 chiropractic lower back manipulations caused the mediators of inflammation to present a normalization response in individuals suffering from chronic low back pain.