Quality Of Life In Patients With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Improves After Chiropractic
Quality Of Life In Patients With Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Improves After Chiropractic
Care
A study in the December 11, 2012 issue of the Journal of Upper Cervical Chiropractic Research reports on the cases of
nineteen people with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS) who experienced significant improvements in their quality of life
after being under chiropractic care for the six month period of the study.
Authors H. Charles Woodfield, BS Pharmacy, DC and Marshall Dickholtz, Sr., DC, FICA, studied 19 people who met at
least 4 of the diagnostic criteria for CFS and had been fatigued for at least 6 months. At the beginning of the study, they
filled out the SF-36 quality of life questionnaire to determine their baseline quality of life rating. The questionnaire was
filled out again at the three-month point of the study and at the end at the six month point.
At the end of the study period, the SF-36 findings revealed a significant increase in the General Health component, from
30.3 (pre) to 55.6 (post) and Mental Health, from 46.4 to 68.6 (higher scores indicate improvement).
The authors concluded, "Unlike treatment approaches for some chronic illnesses, where measurable changes recorded
immediately after an intervention dwindle or vanish over time, our subjects' SF-36 scores continued to improve compared
to baseline; appreciably at three months, and substantially at six months."
"If correction of [vertebral subluxations] in clinically diagnosed CFS patients is the single variable that appears
responsible for self-reported improvement of functional and mental health status, then further study is warranted…"