Abstract
ObjectivesA range of health-care professionals including chiropractors provide treatment for sports-related health problems. This study reports analyses from the first national workforce survey to determine practitioner and practice-related factors associated with the frequent treatment of athletes or sports people by Australian chiropractors. Design and settingA 21-item questionnaire collecting information pertaining to practitioner and practice-related characteristics was distributed to all Australian registered chiropractors, as part of the Australian Chiropractic Research Network (ACORN) project and attracted a response rate of 43% (n = 2005). Statistical analyses compared the frequency of treating athletes or sports people against a wide range of relevant practitioner and practice characteristics. ResultsOf the respondents, 49.5% (n = 936) reported frequently treating athletes or sports people, and these chiropractors were more likely to be male as well as report more patient care hours and patient visits per week than those chiropractors who did not frequently treat athletes or sports people. Chiropractors who frequently treat athletes or sports people were also more likely to perform multi-modal management, have multi-disciplinary practitioner relations, use diagnostic equipment and discuss nutrition and medication use as part of their patient care than those chiropractors who did not frequently treat athletes or sports people. ConclusionsNearly half of participating Australian chiropractors treat athletes or sports people frequently. The current and potential role of chiropractors in sports medicine appears significant. Further research is needed to examine the role, practices and outcomes of such chiropractic care helping to, provide treatment and policy development in this area of clinical management.
Highlights
Sports injuries pose a substantial health burden1, 2 and constitute a common cause of pain and disability thatD can negatively impact an individual’s quality of life and well-being
T In direct response to this research gap, this paper reports the prevalence of treatment of athletes or sports P people from a large, nationally-representative practice-based research network (PBRN) - the Australian I Chiropractic Research Network (ACORN) - as well as examining the relationship between the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of Australian chiropractors and the frequency with which they treat
Our study provides important platform data M regarding the scope of sports chiropractic in Australia
Summary
Sports injuries pose a substantial health burden and constitute a common cause of pain and disability thatD can negatively impact an individual’s quality of life and well-being. Sports injuries pose a substantial health burden and constitute a common cause of pain and disability that. It is estimated that 24% of all those experiencing a sport or exercise related injury are affected by a long-term condition; a figure similar to the. Sports injuries pose a significant monetary burden with emergency-related costs and direct hospital-related expenses of sports injuries in Australia recently. E A wide range of health care professionals, including sports physicians, physiotherapists, exercise C physiologists, chiropractors, osteopaths, sports trainers and massage therapists provide sports injury management and treat athletes or sports people. C workforce study reported that 12.5% of patient visits were for sports injuries.. A population level study of 2529 Canadian chiropractors (response rate 39%) found that sports injuries were the main C workforce study reported that 12.5% of patient visits were for sports injuries. A population level study of 2529 Canadian chiropractors (response rate 39%) found that sports injuries were the main
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