There are good chiropractors. I know several people that have relied on them for years. My mom had extreme hip pain and could barely walk. The doctor gave her a steroid shot. Worked great for a few months. She needed a 2nd steroid shot and the doctor said she couldn’t have any more for almost a year. Over use of the shots can cause damage.
Plan B was a chiropractor that several people recommended. Mom walked pain free after six weeks. The pain did come back the next year and she scheduled more chiropractor visits.
A friend from high school is a plumber. He almost had to stop work and go on Disability benefits. His chiropractor has kept him working for the last 8 years. He has to crawl in attics and even get on his belly to get under houses. Its very strenuous work.
A good chiropractor is licensed and will order xrays and other scans. Apparently Caitlin Jensen’s chiropractor didn’t take this essential step.
I live in a city with a college of chiropractic, and they’re pretty much on every street corner. Some are legitimate practitioners, and some are woo to the core.
And I can’t be the only person who read that as “Caitlin Jenner” (sic).
Me too–and was wondering “why does a rich woman like that have a Gofundme?”. Aceplace57 probably just should have given a generic title: “Young Woman Paralyzed after Visit to Chiropractor”
Anyone have a guess as to how much liability coverage chiropractors usually carry? This looks like a $10 million or more judgement.
When I was a baby, my mother got a back injury from a chiropractor that put her in the hospital for a week, and even though I don’t remember it, I won’t go near one. I do know people who have been helped by them, though.
Ms Jensen may have been at extreme risk. A car wreck or just turning her head quickly might have caused a similiar injury.
The chiropractor should have ordered xrays at a minimum before touching her.
I woke up with cricks in my neck several times in my early teens. Family told me it would get worse if I didn’t move my head. A fast head turn and it was fine. Now I realize what could have happened. I guess my young age meant I didn’t have any dislocated vertebra. It was muscle stiffness.
This physical therapist says almost the same thing as my family did 50 years ago. Except he recommends stretching.
Remember a huge number of people die every year of medical errors. Remember this?
Although few people believe it is anywhere near this bad.
So chiropractic is probably similar to the rest of the medical world–and a great many people find chiropractic useful–particularly those who do a lot of hard, physical labor.
I did too. Mostly because, I think, we’re trained to expect headlines to have the names of people we should know. People often complain about headline epithets instead of names like “local woman” or “African teenager,” especially in particular circumstances, but I think this is one reason for it (albeit caused by the very practice).
Back pain is complicated. Not all of it needs treatments stronger than pain medicine and time. Physiotherapy and occupational therapy can help.
I have seen a lot of people who say they found chiropracty helpful, though some are better than others. I might consider it if other things did not work. But I would not let them do anything to my neck, as this problem is known. In fact, I have seen this serious problem clinically.
I was trying to be respectful. Ms Jensen suffered such a horrific and permanent injury. Georgia woman gets paralyzed, just didn’t seem right. I wanted to acknowledge her as a person that is suffering.
She’s right on the edge of Locked-in Syndrome. A little more spinal damage and she wouldn’t be able to move anything.
The minimum required limit in Georgia for chiropractors’ medical malpractice insurance is $1 million. He might also have umbrella above that, but I have no idea how high that might go.
I guess my young age meant I didn’t have any dislocated vertebra. It was muscle stiffness.