Medical care plus chiropractic manipulative therapy

Site: Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC) Conventional medical care only/Usual Medical Care (UMC)
Conventional Medical Care Only: Conventional medical care may include the following: a focused history and physical examination; limited diagnostic imaging restricted to select volunteers (i.e., for example, those with radiculopathy); education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

Site: WRNMMC - UMC

Site: Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WR)
Medical care (UMC) plus chiropractic manipulative therapy
Medical Care + Chiropractic Care: Patients will receive chiropractic spinal manipulative therapy plus conventional medical care. Medical may include the following: education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

Site: WRNMMC - UMC + Chiropractic Care

Site: Naval Hospital Pensacola
Conventional medical care only/Usual Medical Care (UMC)
Conventional Medical Care Only: Conventional medical care may include the following: a focused history and physical examination; limited diagnostic imaging restricted to select volunteers (i.e., for example, those with radiculopathy); education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

Site: NHP - UMC

Site: Naval Hospital Pensacola
Medical care (UMC) plus chiropractic manipulative therapy
Medical Care + Chiropractic Care: Patients will receive chiropractic spinal manipulative therapy plus conventional medical care. Medical may include the following: education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

Site: NHP - UMC + Chiropractic Care

Site: Naval Medical Center San Diego
Conventional medical care only/Usual Medical Care (UMC)
Conventional Medical Care Only: Conventional medical care may include the following: a focused history and physical examination; limited diagnostic imaging restricted to select volunteers (i.e., for example, those with radiculopathy); education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

Site: NMCSD - UMC

Site: Naval Medical Center San Diego
Medical care (UMC) plus chiropractic manipulative therapy
Medical Care + Chiropractic Care: Patients will receive chiropractic spinal manipulative therapy plus conventional medical care. Medical may include the following: education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

Site: NMCSD - UMC + Chiropractic Care

Total

Sex: Female, Male

Ethnicity (NIH/OMB)

Race/Ethnicity, Customized

Volunteers will be asked to rate their average level of low back pain (LBP) during the prior week on an ordinal 11-box scale (0=no LBP; 10=worst LBP possible) at baseline and at all of the follow-up assessments. The NRS has excellent metric properties, is easy to administer and score, and has received much use in LBP research. Pain data will be collected at baseline and at all endpoint visits.

Numerical Rating Scale (NRS) for Prior Week

We will use a volunteer self-report modified 24-item version of the RMDQ to assess LBP-related disability. The RMDQ may be the most common and respected LBP assessment instrument in LBP outcomes research. It is a one page questionnaire related to LBP disability with documented reliability and validity. It can discriminate between different forms of treatment for back pain, and it is sensitive to clinical change. The RMDQ has been chosen for a number of clinical trials of LBP treatments for its excellent metric properties, ease of use, patient acceptance, and high face validity. This questionnaire will be administered at baseline and at all endpoints. Higher score indicates higher disability. Scale: 0 (no disability) to 24 (maximum disability).

Roland Morris Disability Questionnaire (RMDQ)

The bothersomeness of symptoms commonly associated with LBP will be measured using an existing measure from the LBP literature. Bothersomeness questions are practical and have demonstrated good internal consistency, construct validity, and responsiveness to change with time in patients with LBP and sciatica.
Possible score ranges from 1 (not at all bothersome) to 5 (extremely bothersome).

Bothersomeness of Symptoms

Volunteers will be asked to rate their level of pain on that day on an ordinal 11-box scale (0=no LBP; 10=worst LBP possible) at baseline and at all of the follow-up assessments. The NRS has excellent metric properties, is easy to administer and score, and has received much use in LBP research. Pain data will be collected at baseline and at all endpoint visits. The question will capture information pertaining to pain over the last 24 hours.

Numerical Pain Rating Scale (NRS) for Past 24 Hours

Based on the pilot study, volunteers will most likely have been seen by other healthcare providers and prescribed pain medication by a primary care provider prior to being enrolled in the study, this questionnaire will ensure that we collect all healthcare and medication use.

Healthcare Utilization & Medication Use

This is a modification of the visual analog scale (VAS) developed to assess degree of improvement over a specified period of time. Global low back pain (LBP) improvement was assessed by asking participants to rate their perceived LBP improvement since baseline on a 7-point scale: 0 = completely gone, 1 = much better, 2 = moderately better, 3 = a little better, 4 = about the same, 5 = a little worse, 6 = much worse.

Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WR) - Usual Medical Care

WR - UMC

Walter Reed National Military Medical Center - Usual Medical Care + Chiropractic Care group

WR - UMC + CC

Naval Hospital Pensacola - Usual Medical Care group

Pensacola - UMC

Naval Hospital Pensacola - Usual Medical Care + Chiropractic Care group

Pensacola - UMC + CC

Naval Medical Center San Diego - Usual Medical Care group

San Diego - UMC

Naval Medical Center San Diego - Usual Medical Care + Chiropractic Care group

San Diego - UMC + CC

Global Improvement Scale

A one item patient satisfaction questionnaire. Satisfaction is measured as means on a numerical rating scale, 0 [not at all satisfied] to 10 [extremely satisfied].

Patient Satisfaction

Previous work has shown that patient expectation regarding benefit of care can be a significant non-specific effect.
The score indicates participant's expectation of helpfulness of treatment for LBP, measured on a scale of 0 (not helpful at all) to 10 (extremely helpful).

All 3 sites combined (WRNMMC, NHP, NMCSD)
Conventional medical care only/Usual Medical Care (UMC)
Conventional Medical Care Only: Conventional medical care may include the following: a focused history and physical examination; limited diagnostic imaging restricted to select volunteers (i.e., for example, those with radiculopathy); education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

All Sites - UMC

All 3 sites combined (WRNMMC, NHP, NMCSD)
Medical care (UMC) plus chiropractic manipulative therapy
Medical Care + Chiropractic Care: Patients will receive chiropractic spinal manipulative therapy plus conventional medical care. Medical may include the following: education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

All Sites Combined - UMC + Chiropractic Care

Patient Expectation

The BPFS is a 12-question functional status survey designed for use as an individual patient decision-making tool. Each of the 12 questions is answered using a 5-point Likert-type scale and therefore scores for this scale will range from 0-60 (higher scores indicate better function). In recent studies, the BPFS is improved sensitivity to change than the RMDQ. This scale will be administered at baseline and all endpoint visits.

Back Pain Functional Scale (BPFS)

Medical care plus chiropractic manipulative therapy
Medical Care + Chiropractic Care: Patients will receive chiropractic spinal manipulative therapy plus conventional medical care. Medical may include the following: education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

Medical Care + Chiropractic Care

Conventional medical care only
Conventional Medical Care Only: Conventional medical care may include the following: a focused history and physical examination; limited diagnostic imaging restricted to select volunteers (i.e., for example, those with radiculopathy); education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

Conventional Medical Care Only

Overall Study

Dr. Cyndy Long

Conventional medical care only/usual medical care (UMC)
Conventional Medical Care Only: Conventional medical care may include the following: a focused history and physical examination; limited diagnostic imaging restricted to select volunteers (i.e., for example, those with radiculopathy); education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

Usual Medical Care

UMC + Chiropractic Care

Lower Back Pain

Patients will receive chiropractic spinal manipulative therapy plus conventional medical care. Medical may include the following: education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

Conventional medical care may include the following: a focused history and physical examination; limited diagnostic imaging restricted to select volunteers (i.e., for example, those with radiculopathy); education about self-management, including maintaining activity levels as tolerated and local ice/heat application; pharmacologic management with the use of analgesics and anti-inflammatory agents; and additional therapies that may be applied for volunteers not responding to the initial interventions, including physical therapy and referral to a pain clinic.

port-wine stain/nicotine

Assessment of Chiropractic Treatment for Low Back Pain and Smoking Cessation in Military Active Duty Personnel.

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