Patient-reported outcome measures quantify patients’ subjective symptoms and are often more in line with accomplishing patient-centered goals. Patient-reported outcomes can give valuable information to evaluate the success of a treatment plan and aid in determining a prognosis based on past response. They are also used by insurance companies for re-imbursement purposes, such as determining medical necessity. Chiarotto et al. developed a core outcome set for use in clinical practice with accompanying suggested measures for patients with low back pain.

"People like to understand things. It’s an earnest and charming quality of the human race. We like to flip to the back of the book to look at the answers. We like it when there’s a tidy way to summarize things. One or two takeaways, please. It’s why Aesop’s fables continue to do so well."

ACA’s annual meeting, the National Chiropractic Leadership Conference, brings you cutting-edge, evidence-based education sessions featuring some of the chiropractic profession’s most respected thought leaders and content experts. Many sessions also offer continuing education credits. Here we pose questions to one of the presenters: James J. Lehman, DC, MBA, whose program is titled, “A Neuromusculoskeletal Medicine Residency: An Example of Interprofessional Collaboration.”

Late last month, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) released a guidance document significantly changing the way the department will handle waiver requests under the 2010 Affordable Care Act (Act).  This enhanced flexibility from the Act could lead to far greater variation across states in the types of plans offered, creating a “patchwork quilt” of benefits and services available to consumers.

ACA’s annual meeting, the National Chiropractic Leadership Conference, brings you cutting-edge, evidence-based education sessions featuring some of the chiropractic profession’s most respected thought leaders and content experts. Many sessions also offer continuing education credits. Here we pose questions to one of the presenters: Alan K. Sokoloff, DC—known to his patients as “Dr. Sok”—who is team chiropractor for the two-time Super Bowl-champion Baltimore Ravens.

Following a successful nine-year collaboration between the American Chiropractic Association (ACA) and the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), a new CPT® code for dry needling will likely be available to providers sometime in late 2019, paving the way potentially for proper coverage, national standards and a greater understanding of how this relatively new modality helps patients in pain.

For more than a century, chiropractic science—at least as offered by many chiropractors—was frozen in late 19^th century medical thought. Because the founders spoke of “tone” and the “safety-pin cycle,” it became almost a rallying cry for many of the followers. But has chiropractic science advanced since that time, and if so, will chiropractors embrace it? Many of you have read my theory textbooks through the years, but have you kept up with our modern science? There is a new story to tell. The new story is based on solid science that dovetails nicely with science from related healthcare disciplines, and that places [the chiropractic profession] squarely in the middle of interdisciplinary recommendations for conservative spine care and positions us as a substitute for old-school use of opioids and back surgery--instead of putting us out on a ledge, preaching against interdisciplinary care.

The choices for retirement savings are extensive and can be overwhelming. And when it comes to retirement planning, inaction can be as bad as making a bad investment decision. One of the most common fears, public speaking, may now be eclipsed for many with the fear of outliving their money. According to the Internal Revenue Service, there is a litany of retirement plan options; however, for each option there are rules and regulations that may appear to be onerous, complicated and confusing. Unfortunately, if a plan is selected and then implemented incorrectly, fines or other negative effects may be assessed to the plan or even the individual investor.

A recent study found that more than 75 percent of pregnant women experience pregnancy-related low back pain, pelvic pain, or a combination; and that this pain increases as pregnancy progresses. Chiropractic care is a safe, effective, and drug-free way to manage these and other musculoskeletal (MSK) symptoms during pregnancy. In this post, we review five common MSK conditions that respond well to chiropractic treatment. 

In the past year, many chiropractors have discussed indications for radiographic examination with renewed interest. In particular, they have questioned the X-ray recommendations of the Choosing Wisely initiative, a project of the American Board of Internal Medicine that seeks to promote more effective use of healthcare resources. The recommendations are hardly revolutionary, and well in line with current radiology education. In my own final radiology classes, professors emphasized that what we learned was only the foundation of what we would need in practice, and a mere fraction of what our peers would learn should they choose to become chiropractic radiologists. The recommendations in Choosing Wisely are shorthand for what we already know.