Chiropractic Care and Musculoskeletal Health

Chiropractic care is a manual therapy discipline focused on the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of disorders of the musculoskeletal system, particularly those affecting the spine. Central to chiropractic practice is the application of spinal manipulation and mobilisation techniques intended to restore joint function, alleviate pain and improve overall mobility. Over the past decade, the profession has broadened its scope to include patient education, soft-tissue therapies and exercise prescription as part of a multimodal approach to musculoskeletal health. Interest in chiropractic has grown globally, driven by rising prevalence of back and neck pain, the pursuit of non-pharmacological pain management strategies and stronger integration within interdisciplinary healthcare settings. Contemporary research emphasises not only clinical effectiveness but also patient profiles, utilisation patterns and the establishment of robust practice-based research networks to advance evidence-informed care.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have described the development of a national practice-based research network designed to engage clinicians in large-scale musculoskeletal epidemiology. The network successfully recruited almost half of the eligible practitioner population, demonstrating representativeness in age, language and geographic distribution. Analyses of clinician engagement revealed factors influencing motivation to participate, such as practitioner age and clinic size, indicating that collaborative infrastructure can be established to support future patient-centred cohort studies and quality-improvement initiatives.

Chiropractic Care and Musculoskeletal Health publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in chiropractic care and musculoskeletal health across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Spinal manipulation: A high-velocity, low-amplitude thrust applied to a spinal joint to improve range of motion and reduce pain.

Mobilisation: A low-velocity, repetitive passive movement of a joint within its physiological range to restore function.

Practice-based research network (PBRN): A collaborative consortium of clinicians and researchers designed to conduct real-world studies in routine practice settings.

Non-specific low back pain: Back pain not attributed to a recognisable pathology, such as infection, tumour or fracture, and without radicular symptoms.

Maintenance care: A preventive strategy in which periodic visits are scheduled after initial treatment to sustain clinical improvements and reduce recurrence.

References

1. The Swiss chiropractic practice-based research network: a population-based cross-sectional study to inform future musculoskeletal research. Scientific Reports (2023).
2. The chiropractic profession: a scoping review of utilization rates, reasons for seeking care, patient profiles, and care provided. Chiropractic & Manual Therapies (2017).
3. Clinical effectiveness of manual therapy for the management of musculoskeletal and non-musculoskeletal conditions: systematic review and update of UK evidence report. Chiropractic & Manual Therapies (2014).
4. The Nordic Maintenance Care program: Effectiveness of chiropractic maintenance care versus symptom-guided treatment for recurrent and persistent low back pain—A pragmatic randomized controlled trial. PLOS ONE (2018).