How an NYU spine neurosurgeon feels about chiropractors

NYU Langone Spine Center Co-Director Dr. Anthony Frempong-Boadu sat down with Tech Insider to talk about spine health, and gave his honest opinion about working with chiropractors. As with choosing any doctor, its smart to do your research and find someone who can truly help you.

[incoherentsasquatch]

I might have more confidence in chiropractors if I didn't know that the guy who invented the practice was a proven con artist.

[davidhackett]

I’m not sure what he thinks of chiropractors, but I’m pretty damn sure he loves the word “modalities”

[BlakeTedKord]

Ok.

So what does he think of chiropractors?

[supernath]

If your spine is moving like 0:05 you're gonna need a whole fuckload of modalities to fix that. A vast minority of modalities even.

[small_ed]

A problem I have with chiropractors is when they take on the authority of performing medical diagnoses, of which they are often wrong. For example, shoulder problems can mirror symptoms of cervical issues, and one can spend a whole lot of money without solving any problem. Chiropractors further typically don't provide either a timed protocol or blueprint for recovery because they want patients to return regularly. The business is a cash cow.

[OKScottT]

I received a hairline fracture on my left leg and slipped two disc's in 8th grade in a trampoline accident. My chiropractor popped my back the first time and my opposite leg went numb. It was about 8 weeks before I could walk. Went through 4 or 5 sessions before begging my parents to stop. Haven't been able to recommend them since.

[Techz]

Okay this does nothing for me! if your gonna sit a doctor down make the video more than 60 seconds long so we can hear what he has to say :/ sheesh

[nonenope]

fun fact
chiropractors don’t need to go to medical school

[Scout]

I cracked a modality listening to this

[jtveg]

I think this doctor was being polite and when he said (a couple of times) *_"if you're not getting the benefit or not progressing"_* this was a veiled way of saying _don't keep spending money week after week on spinal manipulation._ This is the way chiropractors operate. They rely on endless repeat business. They don't actually fix anything (since there usually isn't anything wrong). Although what they do is akin to a very expensive massage. You temporarily feel better. Psychologically your mind needs to rationalise the great monetary expense so you double down and convince yourself it was necessary, only to come back again and again.

[headlesssoldier]

What does making a popping noise with synovial fluid having anything to do with bones in the body?

[Axenicsecond]

This guy got his degree in Modalities.

[akramhabibi]

Wow the comments on here are absolutely ridiculous. Spinal health is such a vast field and individuals can have a spectrum of symptoms and causes for spine related diseases. What this surgeon is advocating is for patients to look at different options before jumping straight into a drastic spinal procedure. Patients can benefit a lot from simple hot compresses, deep tissue massages, or in this case chiropractors. No ones saying every person in these fields is going to cure you but you can often get reliable referrals from your physician. More than anything, this just shows that medicine needs to incorporate other specialties that aren’t as drastic as surgery.

To those criticizing his use of the word modality, most medical professionals use that term constantly in clinic. It’s constantly used in medical literature, lectures, discussions, etc. The trolling is a little sad to say the least.

[lziv]

From what I can tell it all depends on the quality of chiropractor you find and what you are seeking to gain from it. It is true that chiropractic medicine has its origin in pseudoscience but the good modern chiropractors ignore the hokey diagnostic side of it and stick to the more functional things. Also chiropractic adjustments aren’t a miracle cure for anything and everything, but if you are having spinal pain or mobility issues and you get in with the right person, you could see great benefit from it as I’ve experienced myself.

[ShariaLawAllDay]

I went to a chiropractor after I was diagnosed with an L5-S1 herniated disc from weightlifting at the age of 18. The bulged disc tripled and it got so much worse. Eventually I was diagnosed with another disc in the L4-L5 space and I've been doing soft stretches and swimming to maintain the pain, and did a few steroidal epidurals in a span of 7 years. I did not opt to do surgery and I hope I don't ever have to.

[malindatrapanese]

It really depends on the individual chiropractor, not all are con artists. Mine was very honest with me & told me that any adjustments he made would only bring me temporary relief because we were just treating the symptom, not the cause- which would require surgery. However, this was also at the VA where staff pay is not contingent on the number of patients they see. That and I think he was just honest & rational. Some chiropractors may honestly believe they can cure anything and aren’t intentionally being deceptive, but not the one I used to see, thankfully.

[mynameisgladiator]

A cutter that said something good about chiropractic. Remarkable.

[toyman]

I would never, EVER go to a chiropractor.

[reanimationeas]

I honestly don't have a problem with Chiropractors so long as they don't overstep boundaries

[caseyvee]

I actually got some very positive results from a chiro for a "pinched nerve" in my lower back. Where I have a problem with them is when they say they can cure cancer (or whatever) by stimulating the endocrine system via the spine.