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
328 Patients, 12-Month Follow-Up
SOURCE
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30208070/
REFERENCE
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NICE
REFERENCE
123
organisation
PLOS ONE
TITLE
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
328 Patients, 12-Month Follow-Up
SOURCE
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30208070/
DISC COMMENTARY
This Swedish trial compared planned chiropractic maintenance visits against symptom-guided care for people with recurrent low back pain, tracking outcomes weekly over a full year.
What was studied?
328 patients who had already responded to chiropractic care were split into two groups: scheduled maintenance visits, or return only when pain flared again.
What did they find?
The maintenance group had about 13 fewer days of bothersome pain over the year, at the cost of roughly two extra visits across the study.
Why it matters
Planned check-ins after initial recovery can meaningfully cut time spent in discomfort, for a modest number of extra appointments.
Why we included it
It illustrates a principle at the heart of good long-term care: brief, planned support can prevent problems recurring, rather than waiting to react once they do.
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What was studied?
328 patients who had already responded to chiropractic care were split into two groups: scheduled maintenance visits, or return only when pain flared again.
What did they find?
The maintenance group had about 13 fewer days of bothersome pain over the year, at the cost of roughly two extra visits across the study.
Why it matters
Planned check-ins after initial recovery can meaningfully cut time spent in discomfort, for a modest number of extra appointments.
Why we included it
It illustrates a principle at the heart of good long-term care: brief, planned support can prevent problems recurring, rather than waiting to react once they do.