Issue 6 of ‘The Laser Therapy Review’ arrived at my office last week. In it was an excellent article detailing evidence that the combination of neck manipulation and laser therapy is best for the treatment of “cervical facet dysfunction” (aka: neck pain).
To keep it simple, here are the basics:
60 women (age 18 – 40) with cervical facet joint pain for more than 30 days were put into 3 treatment groups:
1. Manipulation of the neck
2. Laser Therapy to the neck
3. Combination of manipulation and laser therapy
Outcome measures included: Numerical Pain Scale, Neck Disability Index, Range of Motion.
Results: All 3 groups showed improvement, as measured by the outcome measures. However, a combination of manipulation and Laser Therapy was more effective than either of the 2 on their own.
I love studies like this because it validates what I’m doing in my practice. Research already validates the role of manipulation and laser for neck pain. But, studies like this show the value of doing both.
Reference:
Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics (March 2011), 34 (3), pg. 153 – 163