More and more research is demonstrating the effectiveness of spinal adjustments for the treatment of a variety of health problems. Spinal manipulation is becoming more popular and is beginning to be practiced by professionals other than chiropractors. While other practitioners may take a seminar or add manipulation as an adjunct, chiropractors have been doing spinal adjusting for over a century and are extensively trained in it.

Chiropractors spend far more classroom time learning manipulation than any other profession. The osteopathic profession has a history of performing spinal manipulation, but as a profession, they have gotten away from it. Most osteopathic schools now only offer instruction is spinal manipulation as an elective. Medical doctors do not recieve training in spinal manipulation. Of 10 physical therapy schools surveyed, none taught spinal manipulation.

Chiropractors on the other hand have an average of over 500 hours in spinal analysis and adjusting (spinal manipulation) techniques. In addition, they receive two years of hands-on clinical experience that is focused on manual manipulation (also called “adjusting”) as the main treatment procedure. In chiropractic colleges, all students are required to pass a practical examination on their adjusting (manipulation) skills and a clinical competency exam before entering their internship.

Not only is chiropractic adjusting safe, it saves money and it gets patients back on their feet much more quickly than other forms of care. Chiropractic adjustments are cheaper per-visit than visits to other professional who provide musculoskeletal care. Chiropractic can further reduce health care costs because patients receiving chiropractic care take fewer prescription drugs and undergo fewer expensive diagnostic tests.