Focus on Alternative and Complementary Therapies
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Focus Alternat Complement Ther©2005 Pharmaceutical Press
Focus Altern Complement Ther 1998; 3: 193
Currently there is limited information about the degree of chiropractors’ involvement in treating children in North America. Therefore we conducted a national survey to determine how frequently and for what reasons chiropractors treat children.
This study is a cross-sectional survey of a random sample of 1200 Canadian chiropractors. In addition to completing a questionnaire, chiropractors were asked to keep a diary for one month indicating how many children under the age of 18 they had seen and for what reason.
59% percent completed the questionnaire and 48% the diary cards. The sample was representative of Canadian chiropractors with respect to age, sex and training. Almost all chiropractors were involved in treating patients under the age of 18. The older the children the more likely chiropractors were to treat them. The diary data show consistently lower involvement in treating children than the questionnaires. Differences were smaller, the older the children. Questionnaire and diary data show that chiropractors see children mostly for musculoskeletal conditions. However, chiropractors overestimated the frequency of treating children with colic, menstrual complaints and immune system conditions on the questionnaire. Major geographic differences were found. 86% of chiropractors expressed interest in more training.
These data provide important baseline data for further studies and suggest the importance of further training.
