Many athletes are aware that chiropractic care is effective for relieving back pain, disc herniation, tennis elbow, and other sports injuries, but did you also know chiropractic could help to reduce your risk of injury in the first place?
In a 2010 study, researchers sought to examine whether chiropractic care could reduce the incidence of lower limb injuries in a sample of 60 semi-elite Australian football players. All players received sports medicine management throughout a season, but half of the players also received chiropractic care. Chiropractors treated the athletes with a variety of techniques commonly used by Florham Park chiropractor Dr. Rivano, including spinal adjustments, soft-tissue therapies, and spinal mobilization.
The researchers found that both groups of players experienced similar injury rates when it came to hamstring and non-contact knee injuries. However, patients under the care of a chiropractor experienced significantly fewer lower-limb muscle strains. They also missed less playing time due to non-contact knee injuries.
Chiropractic care was also found to improve grip strength in professional judo athletes and athletic performance in American college football players. A study published last year examined the effects of spinal adjustments on the athletic performance of 115 football players from Virginia Tech. Both offensive and defensive players had slightly improved performance if they received spinal adjustments. While these improvements weren't statistically significant, the positive improvements do attest to the beneficial effects of regular chiropractic care for athletes. Finally, another 2012 study showed that chiropractic neck adjustments lead to a 11-17% improvement in grip strength amongst professional judo athletes.
Maintaining the health of your spine can protect you from common sports injuries like back strains and joint problems. Florham Park chiropractor Dr. Rivano is a Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician who can not only relieve your existing sports injury, but will help you prevent future injuries from recurring.
Reference
Brolinson PG, et al. Precompetition manipulative treatment and performance among Virginia tech athletes during 2 consecutive football seasons: a preliminary, retrospective report. Journal of the American Osteopathic Association 2012: 112(9):607-15.
Botelho, Marcelo and Bruno Andrade. “Effect of Cervical Spine Manipulative Therapy on Judo Athletes’ Grip Strength. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapies. 2011; 35(11): 38-44.
Hoskins W, Pollard H. The effect of a sports chiropractic manual therapy intervention on the prevention of back pain, hamstring and lower limb injuries in semi-elite Australian Rules footballers: a randomized control trial. BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders 2010;11:64.