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Rheumatoid Arthritis Helped by Chiropractic – A Case StudyA patient with Rheumatoid Arthritis was helped by chiropractic care according to a case study published on October 4, 2023, in the Annals of Vertebral Subluxation Research. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), "Rheumatoid arthritis, or RA, is an autoimmune and inflammatory disease, which means that your immune system attacks healthy cells in your body by mistake, causing inflammation (painful swelling) in the affected parts of the body. RA mainly attacks the joints, usually many joints at once."
The authors of the study begin by noting that RA affects between 0.4-1.3% of the population of the industrialized world and is 2 to 3 times more common in women. They report that the hands and feet are most commonly affected with pain and swelling. The neck is also commonly involved in RA cases. The study points out that the typical medical care for RA is medications. However, they report that the effects of the medications are not only limited, but they come with a wide variety of serious side effects.
In this case, a 28-year-old woman went to see a chiropractor for joint pain and swelling. The woman reported that she was suffering with the joint pain and swelling for the past three years. She recalled that her problems seemed to start three days after falling off a fence. The pain was frequent and was worse in the mornings. Oddly, her pain only affected one joint at a time, but the pain would migrate between her shoulders, knees, feet, and hands. When her problems flared up, her joints appeared red and swollen, and would be hot to the touch. Not long after her problems began, the woman was diagnosed as having RA and placed on medications.
In addition to her primary problems of joint pains from her RA, the woman also reported to the chiropractor that she was suffering from a variety of other issues including frequent colds, irritability, trouble sleeping, headaches, dizziness, ear infections, fainting, blurred/double vision, chest pain, digestive problems, heartburn, lower back pain/stiffness, and menstrual problems. It is unclear if these problems were a result of the medications she was taking for the RA.
A chiropractic examination with x-rays was taken to specifically see if the woman's spine had subluxations. In addition, her ranges of motions were measured to chart any progress from her chiropractic care. Because it was determined that subluxations were present, specific forms of chiropractic adjustments were regularly administered to address the subluxations.
After 12 weeks of care, the woman reported that she was no longer taking medications for the migrating joint pains she was experiencing. Additionally, she reported that the symptoms of fatigue, swollen and painful joints, sleep problems, headaches, dizziness, blurred/double vision, chest pain, frequent colds/flu, and digestive problems had all dramatically decreased. Upon re-examination, the woman's ranges of motions had also improved.
In the discussion section of the study, the authors explained how chiropractic care could have a positive effect on an autoimmune condition such as Rheumatoid Arthritis. They stated, "The role of the nervous system is to control and coordinate all the functions of the body. Thus it would only make sense to begin the search for the etiology or expression of dis-ease in the body within the nervous system. The autonomic nervous system, with subcategories of parasympathetic and sympathetic immune systems, exhibits an extraordinary amount of regulation over the immune system." |