Please read this consent form and discuss it, if you would like to, with your doctor, and then sign where indicated at the bottom of the page. Clinicians who use spinal manual therapy techniques, such as joint manipulation, mobilization, or adjustment are required to inform their patients that there may be some risks associated with such treatment.
Treatments provided at this clinic, including the spinal adjustment, manipulation and/or mobilization, have been the subject of much research conducted over many years and have been demonstrated to be appropriate and effective treatments for many common forms of spinal pain, pain in the shoulder/arms/legs, for headaches and other neuromuskulosketetal symptoms. Treatment provided at this clinic may also contribute to your overall well-being. The risk of injury or complication from manual treatment is substantially lower than the risk associated with many standard medical treatments given for the same forms of musculoskeletal pain, such as muscle relaxing drugs, anti-inflammatory drugs such as aspirin, or pain pills. The most frequent risk that occurs in a chiropractic clinic is from burns associated with hot packs. Our office does not even use hot packs. Rarely some patients have reported muscle or ligament sprains or strains or rib fractures following an adjustment, however, our low amplitude techniques make that extremely improbable. There have been some “reports” of disc injury following an adjustment, however, there is NO scientific study that has ever demonstrated that such injuries are caused, or may be caused, by adjustments or manipulative techniques. In fact there is much scientific evidence to the contrary. Chiropractic adjustments offer disc patients significant relief and a speedier recovery without the need to resort to surgery. There have also been “reports” of injuries to a vertebral artery following neck adjustments. Usually these patients have a predilection for vertebral artery dissection prior to their chiropractic visit. These patients are already at risk for stroke under many positional activities. They are already at risk for serious neurological injury and impairment, and are no more likely to have such an incident in a chiropractic office than they are in a medical clinic or a beauty salon. This form of complication is astronomically rare occurring about 1 in 12-50 million and has little or no correlation with the chiropractic adjustment.
Your clinician will evaluate your individual case; provide an explanation of care and a suggested treatment plan, or alternatively a referral for outside consultation and/or further medical evaluation if deemed necessary.
Acknowledgement: I acknowledge that I have read, discussed, or have been given the opportunity to discuss, with my clinician the nature of chiropractic treatment in general and my treatment in particular as well as the contents of the consent.
Consent: I consent to the chiropractic treatment(s) offered or recommended to me by my clinician, including joint adjustment or manipulation or mobilization to the joints of the spine (neck and back), pelvis and extremities (shoulder, upper limbs and lower limbs). I intend this consent to apply to all my present and future treatments at this clinic.