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Upcoming Interview with Drs. Imran Niazi and Kelly Holt

Dr. Imran Niazi, Dr. Kelly Holt

Dr. Imran Khan Niazi received his B.Sc. degree in Electrical engineering and his Masters in biomedical engineering. He received his PhD under the supervision of Prof. Dario Farina from Center of sensory-motor interaction, Health Science Technology Department, University of Aalborg, Aalborg, Denmark in 2012. After working as a postdoc for a year, he moved to New Zealand in 2013, where he is currently working as Senior Research Fellow at New Zealand College of Chiropractic.

Dr. Kelly Holt was a member of the 1998 inaugural graduating class of the New Zealand College of Chiropractic. Besides his chiropractic degree he also holds a Bachelor of Science majoring in physiology and a PhD in Health Science from the University of Auckland. His PhD focused on the effects of chiropractic care on sensorimotor function and falls risk in older adults. Kelly worked in private practice as a chiropractor for 10 years following graduation and has taught at the New Zealand College of Chiropractic since 2000 and is currently the Dean of Research at the College.

Please comment below if you have any questions for us during the interview. I might choose some of them for our conversation.

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Upcoming interview with Dr. Katie de Luca

Upcoming interview with Dr. Katie de Luca.  Katie de Luca is a post-doctoral research fellow in the Department of Chiropractic at Macquarie University. She is a chiropractor in clinical practice, however her research focuses on the epidemiology and management of musculoskeletal conditions, with expertise in the elderly. In 2016 she was awarded her PhD from the University of Newcastle, School of Medicine and Public Health. Her thesis explored the experience of pain in women with arthritis, and resulted in substantial contributions to fields of rheumatology, pain and ageing research. She has 25 peer-reviewed journal publications and more than 50 conference presentations, which includes several invited keynote presentations on back pain in the elderly. These have been at regional, national and international conferences in gerontology, pain, public health and chiropractic forums. She is on the editorial boards of Chiropractic and Manual Therapies and JMPT, and peer-reviews for another 13 journals.  Please comment below if you have any questions for us during the interview. I might choose some of them for our conversation.

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Lower Medicare Costs for Chiropractic Users with Chronic Low Back Pain and Multiple Comorbidities

BackacheManaging and controlling health care expenditures is a top priority.  Multiple comorbidities in the aging population has become more prevalent likely because of the extended lifespan experienced in the U.S. over the last few decades.  It is estimated that more than sixty percent of Americans over age 65 have multiple chronic conditions, and twenty-three percent of Medicare beneficiaries have 5 or more chronic conditions.

Patients with chronic low back pain (cLBP) have been thought to present to our offices with high prevalence of psychological, somatoform, and musculoskeletal comorbidity. The persistence of LBP may contribute to the development of these disorders and comorbidities have also been associated with poor outcome of LBP. Additionally, patients with comorbidities present with worse physical and psychosocial functioning, poorer response to treatment, and higher rates of health care utilization than other patients suffering from LBP.

The care of individuals with chronic conditions is estimated to account for 78% of US healthcare spending, and Medicare beneficiaries with more than 1 chronic condition account for 95% of all Medicare spending.  Not surprisingly, those with more than 5 chronic conditions account for 66% of Medicare spending. The probability that patients will use expensive health care such as hospital care increases substantially when there are comorbidities.

The rising prevalence of low back pain (LBP) among Medicare beneficiaries, the growing costs of its treatment, and the high use and costs of prescription drugs suggest an essential need to identify suitable, cost-effective, non-drug, non-surgical treatments for older patients with LBP.

Most LBP in older adults can be managed non-surgically.  Randomized controlled clinical trials have shown that chiropractic manipulative treatment (CMT) is an effective, conservative treatment option for LBP. With this in mind, the authors wanted to explore whether older Medicare fee-for service beneficiaries with an episode of LBP and multiple comorbidities who obtained CMT during their episode had lower costs than those who did not.

Methods:

This study was an observational, retrospective study that used Medicare fee-for-service data from 2006 to 2012 to identify older (aged 66 to 99) patients who had a discrete episode of cLBP.  The episode was defined as lasting at least 90 days and was preceded and followed by 180 days in which no LBP diagnosis was noted.  Additionally, each patient also had an additional musculoskeletal disorder diagnosis and a mental health disorder. If a patient had multiple episodes during the study period, only the first episode was included in the analysis.

The study included 4 groups of patients who used: 1) only CMT; 2) conventional medical care followed by CMT; 3) CMT followed by conventional medical care; and 4) only conventional medical care.

For these 4 treatment groups, the authors used un-weighted and propensity-score weighted inflation- and price-adjusted Medicare Part A, B, and D reimbursements during the episode.  Propensity scoring is a powerful tool to strengthen causal inferences drawn from observational studies. Propensity scoring helps in selecting similar patient groups for comparison. Medicare Part A covers hospital, skilled nursing facility, home health and hospice care expenditures. Medicare Part B covers doctors’ services and other outpatient expenditures; and Medicare Part D covers prescription medications. Particular attention was given to Part B reimbursements for chiropractic care, psychiatric care, physical therapy care, and spinal manipulation therapy (SMT) provided by doctors of osteopathy (DOs) as well as to Part D reimbursements for pain medications.

The study also looked at rate of spine surgery within 1 year of the end of the episode as well as compound rates of growth for price and inflation-adjusted Medicare expenditures. In addition, the study examined expenditures for psychiatric visits and pain medications.

Results:

  • Medicare reimbursements during the cLBP treatment episode were lowest for patients who used CMT alone
  • CMT only patients had higher rates of healthcare use for low back pain but lower rates of back surgery in the year following the treatment episode
  • Costs were greatest for patients receiving medical care alone
  • Patients who used only CMT had the lowest annual growth rates in almost all Medicare expenditure categories
  • Patients who used only CMT had the lowest Part A and Part B expenditures per episode day, although there was no indication of lower psychiatric or pain medication expenditures associated with CMT

Key Points:

  • Among older, multiply-comorbid Medicare beneficiaries with a chronic low back pain episode, chiropractic manipulative treatment was associated with lower overall episode costs and lower episode costs per day
  • Use of CMT was associated with lower total Part A and Part D Medicare cost growth for multiply-comorbid patients with chronic low back pain episodes over the course of the study period
  • The authors found overall Medicare cost-savings associated with use of chiropractic care
  • There was no evidence of lower psychiatric or pain medication expenditures associated with CMT

Source: Weeks WB, Leininger B, Whedon JM, Lurie JD, Tosteson TD, Swenson R, O’Malley AJ, Goertz CM. The Association Between Use of Chiropractic Care and Costs of Care Among Older Medicare Patients With Chronic Low Back Pain and Multiple Comorbidities. J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 2016 Feb 19. pii: S0161-4754(16)00007-5. doi: 10.1016/j.jmpt.2016.01.006.

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Is Chiropractic Useful For Dizziness and Balance?

42184199_sDizziness and imbalance are amongst the most common complaints in older people, and are a growing public health concern since they put older people at a significantly higher risk of falling. A recent study explored the role of chiropractic in the treatment of dizziness/balance disorders through analysis of data from the 2008 National Health Interview Survey (the only year that included a subset of questions about balance and dizziness).  Questions were asked about dizziness, balance and  accompanying health conditions as well as their perceived causes and effects of the dizziness or balance problem. The survey data queried whether people were helped by a variety of practitioners, including chiropractors.   Balance or dizziness problems were reported by 11% of all respondents.  The reported prevalence was 35% for those aged 65 or older.  The authors found that although a small proportion (4.2%) sought chiropractic care for balance and dizziness, those who did were very likely to report that it had helped (OR, 1.73). For those in whom the cause of their balance or dizziness problem was head or neck trauma, the odds ratio for perceiving that they had been helped by a chiropractor was 9.5, compared with OR 0.53 for medical physicians. For those respondents aged 65 years and older, and for those reporting the cause of their balance and dizziness were trauma or neurological or musculoskeletal issues, the OR was even higher (OR, 13.78).

Reference:
Ndetan H, Hawk C, Sekhon VK, Chiusano M. The Role of Chiropractic Care in the Treatment of Dizziness or Balance Disorders: Analysis of National Health Interview Survey Data. J Evid Based Complementary Altern Med. 2016 Apr;21(2):138-42. doi: 10.1177/2156587215604974. Epub 2015 Sep 11. PubMed PMID: 26362851.

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Lower Medicare Costs for Chiropractic Users with Chronic Low Back Pain and Multiple Comorbidities

Low Back Chiropractic AdjustmentMost low back pain in older adults can be managed non-surgically.  Randomized controlled clinical trials have shown that chiropractic manipulative treatment (CMT) is an effective, conservative treatment option for LBP. With this in mind, the authors of a new analysis wanted to explore whether older Medicare fee-for service beneficiaries with an episode of LBP and multiple comorbidities who obtained CMT during their episode had lower costs than those who did not.

This study was an observational, retrospective study that used Medicare fee-for-service data from 2006 to 2012 to identify older (aged 66 to 99) patients who had a discrete episode of cLBP.  The study included 4 groups of patients who used: 1) only CMT; 2) conventional medical care followed by CMT; 3) CMT followed by conventional medical care; and 4) only conventional medical care.

For these 4 treatment groups, the authors used un-weighted and propensity-score weighted inflation- and price-adjusted Medicare Part A, B, and D reimbursements during the episode.  Propensity scoring is a powerful tool to strengthen causal inferences drawn from observational studies. Propensity scoring helps in selecting similar patient groups for comparison. Medicare Part A covers hospital, skilled nursing facility, home health and hospice care expenditures. Medicare Part B covers doctors’ services and other outpatient expenditures; and Medicare Part D covers prescription medications. Particular attention was given to Part B reimbursements for chiropractic care, psychiatric care, physical therapy care, and spinal manipulation therapy (SMT) provided by doctors of osteopathy (DOs) as well as to Part D reimbursements for pain medications.

The study also looked at rate of spine surgery within 1 year of the end of the episode as well as compound rates of growth for price and inflation-adjusted Medicare expenditures. In addition, the study examined expenditures for psychiatric visits and pain medications.

Results:

  • Medicare reimbursements during the cLBP treatment episode were lowest for patients who used CMT alone
  • CMT only patients had higher rates of healthcare use for low back pain but lower rates of back surgery in the year following the treatment episode
  • Costs were greatest for patients receiving medical care alone
  • Patients who used only CMT had the lowest annual growth rates in almost all Medicare expenditure categories
  • Patients who used only CMT had the lowest Part A and Part B expenditures per episode day, although there was no indication of lower psychiatric or pain medication expenditures associated with CMT

Key Points:

  • Among older, multiply-comorbid Medicare beneficiaries with a chronic low back pain episode, chiropractic manipulative treatment was associated with lower overall episode costs and lower episode costs per day
  • Use of CMT was associated with lower total Part A and Part D Medicare cost growth for multiply-comorbid patients with chronic low back pain episodes over the course of the study period
  • The authors found overall Medicare cost-savings associated with use of chiropractic care
  • There was no evidence of lower psychiatric or pain medication expenditures associated with CMT

Reference:

Weeks WB, Leininger B, Whedon JM, Lurie JD, Tosteson TD, Swenson R, O’Malley AJ, Goertz CM. The Association Between Use of Chiropractic Care and Costs of Care Among Older Medicare Patients With Chronic Low Back Pain and Multiple Comorbidities. J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 2016 Feb 19. pii: S0161-4754(16)00007-5.

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Risk of Injury Following Visits to Health Professionals

Aging ChiropracticThere are physiologic changes associated with aging. There are also health conditions that occur more commonly with advancing age. These changes and conditions increase an older adult’s vulnerability to injuries. A recent study investigated risk of injury to Medicare beneficiaries with an office visit for a neuromusculoskeletal problem to chiropractors and primary care physicians.  Specifically, investigators looked at the risk of injury within 7 days of those treated by chiropractic spinal manipulation vs. those evaluated by a primary care physician.  Results showed that risk of injury to the head, neck or trunk within 7 days was 76% lower among subjects with a chiropractic office visit as compared to those who saw a primary care physician.

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