We often hear of the side effects of medication, surgery, and other invasive medical treatments, but we don't too often hear of the "side effects of chiropractic."  This got me looking into the question of side effects.

One internet site defines "side effects" as "problems that occur when treatment goes beyond the desired effects, or problems that occur in addition to the desired therapeutic effect."

Another internet site defines it more thoroughly: "a harmful and undesired effect resulting from medication or other intervention such as surgery. An adverse effect may be termed a side effect, when judged to be secondary to a main or therapeutic effect, and may result from an unsuitable or incorrect dosage or procedure..."  

This site also describes "therapy" to be "the attempted remediation of a health problem, usually following a diagnosis."   There's that word "diagnosis" again.  Our "medical cousins" seem determined to remove that word from our lexicon...could it be that they desire to remove our right to "render therapy" as well?

In an article filed HERE one site notes "any form of health system intervention poses the risks of developing certain side effects, and chiropractic care is one of them...though there are a few..."

"Ever since its emergence, chiropractic care has been receiving praises in the medical industry for introducing a brand of medical treatment that is effective and yet safe. For once, it lacks the use of invasive medical approaches that can be both dangerous and expensive."

The report points out that side effects are not completely avoidable because of the different responses of individual bodies, but "if there are any side effects to be experienced from the use of chiropractic treatment, they are mostly mild and pose no real threat to someone’s health....Minor side effects range from feeling of fatigue, soreness, headaches, among others and they are all temporary. Plus, patients who experience them only cover a minor percentage of patients undergoing chiropractic care."

This report notes that an "advantage of chiropractic treatment...is the lack of drug prescription or use of surgical methods to treat the medical condition..." and "any risks of developing side effects is very low. In fact, it is determined to be the least risky method of health care treatment available in the medical community."

This author notes that there are those who "claim that there are serious side effects brought about by spinal manipulation or other chiropractic treatments. Stroke is one of them. They claim the stroke is a result of the manipulation on the neck that create damage to the arteries that transport blood into the brain."  After a thorough researching of the scientific literature, however, it has been determined by one state licensing board that "After a careful and thorough review of all the testimony and documentary evidence admitted at the hearing, the Board concludes that there is sufficient evidence to establish that a stroke or a cervical arterial dissection is NOT a risk or side effect of a joint mobilization, manipulation or adjustment of the cervical spine."

There are, however, times where chiropractic therapy is best not employed.  While the "majority of chiropractic treatments provide immediate relief for patients...when pain continues even after the initial treatment procedure, it is recommended that the chiropractic treatment is continued for the next two weeks until the symptoms of their condition subsides. If there are no signs of improvement, then doctors should consider other treatment options.  There are certain instances or disorders though wherein chiropractic is not the best recommended type of treatment to undergo. Among them are infection in the bones or joints, acute rheumatoid arthritis, bone cancer, osteoporosis, or other diseases in the bone marrow or spinal cord."

"Talk with your chiropractic doctor about possible side effects that can develop from a treatment method. This will enable you to take proper measures in ensuring that the side effects do not worsen, or if there are any ways for you to prevent them...When you experience side effects that last beyond 24 to 48 hours, make sure to inform your...doctor of chiropractic immediately."

Some adverse effects only occur only when starting, increasing or discontinuing a treatment. Wikipedia notes some of the adverse effects of various forms of medical treatment:

Surgery:  Infection, hemorrhage, inflammation, scarring, loss of function, changes in blood flow, and death.

Radiation therapy: Burns, alterations in the skin, iatrogenic diseases.

Vaccination:  Fever, malaise, local site reactions, eczema vaccinatum (a severe, sometimes fatal complication which may result in persons who have eczema or atopic dermatitis.)

Even Diagnostic procedures: Allergic reactions, injury to tissues in invasive diagnostic procedures.

Pharmacology: Adverse effects can occur as a collateral or side effect of many interventions, but they are particularly important in pharmacology, due to its wider, and sometimes uncontrollable, use by way of self-medication."

"Significant morbidity and mortality is caused around the world because of ...Drug-drug and food-drug interactions..."

"Imperfections in clinical trials, such as insufficient number of patients or short duration, sometimes lead to public health disasters such as those of fenfluramine (the so-called fen-phen episode), thalidomide and, more recently...(Vioxx), where drastic adverse effects were observed, like teratogenesis, pulmonary hypertension, stroke, heart disease, neuropathy, etc., and a significant number of deaths..."

"Most drugs have a large list of non-severe or mild adverse effects which do not rule out the interruption of usage. These effects have widely variable incidence, according to individual sensitivity. They comprise nausea, dizziness, diarrhea, malaise, vomiting, headache, dermatitis, dry mouth, etc." 

Wikipedia offers a list of some adverse reactions and their causes:

    •    Abortion, miscarriage or uterine hemorrhage associated with misoprostol (Cytotec), a labor-inducing drug (this is a case where the adverse effect has been used legally and illegally for performing abortions)
    •    Addiction to many sedatives and analgesics, such as diazepam, morphine, etc.
    •    Birth defects associated with Thalidomide and isotretinoin (Accutane)
    •    Bleeding of the intestine associated with aspirin therapy
    •    Cardiovascular disease associated with COX-2 inhibitors (i.e. Vioxx)
    •    Deafness and kidney failure associated with gentamicin (an antibiotic)
    •    Death, following sedation in children using propofol (Diprivan)
    •    Dementia associated with Coronary artery bypass surgery
    •    Depression or hepatic injury caused by interferon
    •    Diabetes caused by atypical antipsychotic medications (neuroleptic psychiatric drugs)
    •    Diarrhea caused by the use of orlistat (Xenical)
    •    Erectile dysfunction associated with many drugs, such as antidepressants
    •    Fever associated with vaccination (in the past, imperfectly manufactured vaccines, such as Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) and poliomyelitis, have caused the very disease they intended to fight)
    •    Glaucoma associated with corticosteroid-based eye drops
    •    Hair loss and anemia may be caused by chemotherapy against cancer, leukemia, etc.
    •    Headache following spinal anaesthesia
    •    Hypertension in ephedrine users, which prompted FDA to remove the status of dietary supplement of ephedra extracts
    •    Insomnia caused by stimulants, methylphenidate (Ritalin), Adderall, etc.
    •    Lactic acidosis associated with the use of stavudine (Zerit, for anti-HIV therapy) or metformin (for diabetes)
    •    Liver damage from paracetamol
    •    Melasma and thrombosis associated with use of estrogen-containing hormonal contraception, such as the combined oral contraceptive pill
    •    Priapism associated with the use of sildenafil
    •    Rhabdomyolysis associated with statins (anti-cholesterol drugs)
    •    Seizures caused by withdrawal from benzodiazepines
    •    Drowsiness or increase in appetite due to antihistamine use. Some antihistamines are used in sleep aids explicitly because they cause drowsiness.
    •    Stroke or heart attack associated with sildenafil (Viagra), when used with nitroglycerin
    •    Suicide, increased tendency associated to the use of fluoxetine and other selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) antidepressants
    •    Tardive dyskinesia associated with long-term use of metoclopramide and many antipsychotic medications

Thankfully these have not been associated with chiropractic therapy.