Index to Chiropractic Literature
Index to Chiropractic Literature
My ICL     Sign In
Friday, March 29, 2024
Index to Chiropractic LiteratureIndex to Chiropractic LiteratureIndex to Chiropractic Literature
Share:


For best results switch to Advanced Search.
Article Detail
Return to Search Results
ID 6258
  Title Does the goose really lay golden eggs? A methodological review of Workmen's Compensation studies
URL https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8492059
Journal J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 1993 Mar-Apr;16(3):161-168
Author(s)
Subject(s)
Peer Review Yes
Publication Type Review
Abstract/Notes

OBJECTIVE: To assess the value of workmen's compensation (WC) studies to determine the effectiveness of chiropractic. Therefore, the results of the available WC studies are summarized and the methodological quality of WC studies is discussed.

DATA SOURCES: All studies were eligible without time restriction. Studies were identified by a Medline search from 1966 to 1990 (key words: chiropractic, and manipulation-orthopedic in combination with comparative studies, follow-up studies, evaluation studies) by manual examination of the most important chiropractic reference systems (CRAC and Index to Chiropractic Literature), by tracking the reference lists of identified (reviews of) WC studies and by correspondence with researchers.

STUDY SELECTION: Studies were regarded as WC studies if by means of databases of WC boards, a comparison was made between claimants treated by chiropractors and those treated by other health care professionals. At least one of the following outcomes should be reported: compensated days, compensation paid or treatment costs.

DATA EXTRACTION: Relevant data (authors, year, state, study population, number of patients, days compensated, compensation paid, number of treatments, consultation costs, additional treatment costs and total cost per case) were extracted by one nonblinded observer. The methodological value was reviewed narratively.

DATA SYNTHESIS: The retrospective character of WC studies and the use of large WC databases harbor severe methodological problems like incomparability of study groups, absence of information on prognostic indicators, insufficient outcome measures and missing data. The results of older WC studies (before 1980) and the more recent WC studies, which were of better methodological quality, are presented separately. The older studies are in favor of chiropractic. Two of the six more recent WC studies challenge chiropractic effectiveness.

CONCLUSIONS: WC studies in general report positive results for chiropractic. Recent results are more ambiguous. Because of the methodological drawbacks identified, WC studies are insufficient to enable a valid study made of chiropractic effectiveness. Therefore, chiropractic (cost-) effectiveness is not yet convincingly proven. More effort should be directed at establishing randomized clinical trials including the question of (cost-) effectiveness.

This abstract is reproduced with the permission of the publisher. Article only available in print.


 

   Text (Citation) Tagged (Export) Excel
 
Email To
Subject
 Message
Format
HTML Text     Excel



To use this feature you must register a personal account in My ICL. Registration is free! In My ICL you can save your ICL searches in My Searches, and you can save search results in My Collections. Be sure to use the Held Citations feature to collect citations from an entire search session. Read more search tips.

Sign Into Existing My ICL Account    |    Register A New My ICL Account
Search Tips
  • Enclose phrases in "quotation marks".  Examples: "low back pain", "evidence-based"
  • Retrieve all forms of a word with an asterisk*, also called a wildcard or truncation.  Example: chiropract* retrieves chiropractic, chiropractor, chiropractors
  • Register an account in My ICL to save search histories (My Searches) and collections of records (My Collections)
Advanced Search Tips