North Dakota Chiropractic Association, Inc

09/10/2026

Where did spinal manipulative therapy actually show an advantage?

One area that stood out was chronic neck pain.

In one of the trials included in this systematic review, SMT combined with home exercise and advice resulted in greater pain reduction compared with:

• Supervised rehabilitative exercise + home exercise/advice
• Home exercise/advice alone

That's an encouraging finding—but there's an important detail:

Not every outcome favored SMT.

While pain reduction demonstrated a between-group advantage, disability and other functional outcomes did not necessarily show the same benefit.

And that's exactly why the outcome being measured matters.

When we say a treatment "worked," what do we mean?

Less pain?
Better function?
Reduced disability?
Improved quality of life?

A treatment can demonstrate an advantage for one outcome without being superior across every measure that matters to a patient.

The takeaway: SMT may be a valuable option for older adults with chronic neck pain, particularly for pain reduction—but the evidence doesn't support a blanket conclusion that it's superior for every outcome.

Good research translation requires looking beyond "Did it work?" and asking "What improved—and by how much?"

09/09/2026

From our 2026 Lunch & Learn speaker, ScoliCare North Dakota

Check out these available dates!

ScoliCare North Dakota with .repost
・・・
Could you recognize the signs of scoliosis early?

Join Dr. Mandy Dietz, our Head Scoliosis Clinician at ScoliCare North Dakota, as she brings her free scoliosis seminar to five locations across North Dakota.

The session covers curve progression, how scoliotic curves develop, radiological red flags, and how to distinguish idiopathic scoliosis from cases that need further investigation. Practical knowledge designed to give health professionals greater confidence when scoliosis walks through the door.

Registration is free. Choose the date and location closest to you.

1️⃣ Minot | Thursday 24 September
2️⃣ Jamestown | Thursday 8 October
3️⃣ Fargo | Thursday 29 October
4️⃣ Dickinson | Thursday 19 November
5️⃣ Bismarck | Thursday 10 December

Tap the link in ScoliCares bio to secure your place.

HealthProfessionals

09/09/2026

09/09/2026

Back to school. Back to good posture.

A heavy backpack can put unnecessary strain on the spine. Help your child start the school year strong by wearing both straps and keeping the weight evenly distributed.

Good backpack habits + chiropractic care = a healthier back all school year long.

09/09/2026

09/08/2026

Fashion is function. Gentlemen, the everyday items you carry and wear directly impact your structural health. Carrying heavy bags on one side, cinching your belt too tight, or sitting on a back-pocket wallet can disrupt your posture and lead to lower back and hip pain.

Pair these everyday style adjustments with routine chiropractic care to keep your spine aligned, your core mobile, and your body moving right.

09/07/2026

So, what did this systematic review actually find?

Across 7 randomized controlled trials and 1,226 older adults, five findings stood out:

01 | SMT generally performed comparably to other conservative treatments.
For many outcomes, spinal manipulative therapy produced similar results to other non-surgical approaches.

02 | No comparator was found to be superior to SMT.
The review did not identify another intervention that consistently outperformed SMT across the included conditions and outcomes.

03 | Chronic neck pain showed some outcomes favoring SMT.
Certain measures demonstrated statistically significant benefits with SMT, although results were not uniform across every outcome.

04 | Lumbar spinal stenosis had some promising findings.
For certain functional outcomes, manual therapy combined with individualized exercise showed benefits compared with medical care or group exercise.

05 | The certainty of the evidence matters.
Across outcomes, evidence certainty ranged from very low to moderate, meaning these findings should be interpreted thoughtfully.

So, what's the bigger picture?

This review supports SMT as a viable conservative treatment option for some older adults with spinal conditions—but it does not establish SMT as universally superior to other conservative approaches.

And that's an important distinction.

Evidence-informed practice isn't about proving that one profession or intervention is "best." It's about understanding the available options, the strength of the evidence, and how each may fit the individual patient in front of us.

Check out the paper here: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/42238484/

09/04/2026