If you are pregnant and suffering from low back pain,  visiting a  chiropractor will provide great relief for you. You might also wonder whether or not seeing a chiropractor is safe during your pregnancy and how much improvement to your low back pain there could be.

After looking at several scientific publications on these exact topics, the appropriate conclusion seems to be that “chiropractic evaluation and treatment during pregnancy may be considered a safe and effective means of treating common musculoskeletal symptoms that affect pregnant patients. The scarcity of published literature warrants further research.” (Borggren, 2007)

So basically the answers are:

• Yes, chiropractic treatment is safe during pregnancy.

• Yes, chiropractic treatment helps common musculoskelatal probelms during pregnancy (including back pain).

• Your friends experience isn’t just one woman’s story. Many women are finding relief and the results are being sporadically published in medical journals too.

Did you know?

• 57 – 69% of women complain of low back pain during pregnancy

• Only about 32% of women report these symptoms to their primary doctor

• Only 25% of primary doctors recommend seeking treatment for the pain.

Clearly this is a big problem with 2 in 3 having pregnancy-related back pain. Also a big problem is that they are generally not talking to their obstetricians and primary care physicians about it and that these professionals are not referring them to effective treatment options.

Chiropractic treatments can be quite effective for pregnancy-related back pain with just a few visits for the majority of women seeking help. In a small study of 17 women:

• Sixteen of 17 (94%) saw clinically important improvements in low back pain with chiropractic care.

• The average pain rating went down from 5.9 to 1.5 (on a scale of 0 to 10).

• It took an average of 1.8 visits and 4.5 days to get clinically important pain relief.

We hope this article gave you hope that many pregnant women do get significant, rapid relief from low back pain. If you are currently pregnant with low back pain, you probably have many questions not answered by this article. Perhaps you’ve never had chiropractic care before or you want to know how we adjust our techniques to work with pregnant patients. The best way to get answers to your questions is with an initial consultation. The only way for us to know whether you are a good candidate is for you to come see us, so call Dr. Michael Kauf at 312-337-4004 for an initial appointment today.