Written by Hannah Harp
Spoon Feed
Safety and effectiveness of chiropractic care for children has not yet been proven. Use of chiropractic care in place of evidence-based treatments without appropriate informed consent is an ethical concern and risks harm.
I’ve got your back…
There is a paucity of high-quality and conclusive data around the risks and benefits of chiropractic care in children. Around 3.5% of US children seek chiropractic care annually, and prevalence is much higher in some subgroups, including families that use other forms of complementary medicine, children with neurological disorders, and children with inborn errors of metabolism. This review examines the evidence and safety of chiropractic care in pediatric populations. Systematic reviews and clinical studies report limited, low-quality evidence supporting spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) for pediatric conditions. Some unblinded studies reported improved perception of symptoms for asthma, infant colic, and musculoskeletal pain. The review concludes that SMT is a reasonable option for headache or back pain, but there is no data proving effectiveness or safety for ADHD, autism, otitis media, colic, breastfeeding or asthma. Adverse events are rare but include serious complications. Inappropriate use of chiropractic care in place of appropriate evidence-based treatments is a concern, including avoidance of immunizations. Pediatricians should discuss chiropractic use with families to ensure safe, evidence-based care. The major limitation of this review is that there just isn’t much data, and what does exist is inconclusive or low-quality.
How will this change my practice?
Many of my patients are taken to chiropractors, generally for MSK issues. While it is a relief to me that there isn’t clear data suggesting that pediatric chiropractic manipulation is unsafe, I completely agree with these authors that a major danger of chiropractic care in children is that it can be used to replace evidence-based treatments.
Source
Chiropractic Care in Children: A Review of Evidence and Safety. Clin Pediatr (Phila). 2024 Dec 22:99228241305202. doi: 10.1177/00099228241305202. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39710943
