critical thinking
According to WebMed, the shark cartilage (tough elastic tissue that provides support, much as bone does) used for medicine comes primarily from sharks caught in the Pacific Ocean. Several types of extracts are made from shark cartilage including squalamine lactate, AE-941, and U-995.
Shark cartilage is most famously used for cancer. Shark cartilage is also used for osteoarthritis, plaque psoriasis, age-related vision loss, wound healing, damage to the retina of the eye due to diabetes, and inflammation of the intestine (enteritis).
A more realistic picture is pained by this abstract:
The promotion of crude shark cartilage extracts as a cure for cancer has contributed to at least two significant negative outcomes: a dramatic decline in shark populations and a diversion of patients from effective cancer treatments. An alleged lack of cancer in sharks constitutes a key justification for its use. Herein, both malignant and benign neoplasms of sharks and their relatives are described, including previously unreported cases from the Registry of Tumors in Lower Animals, and two sharks with two cancers each. Additional justifications for using shark cartilage are illogical extensions of the finding of antiangiogenic and anti-invasive substances in cartilage. Scientific evidence to date supports neither the efficacy of crude cartilage extracts nor the ability of effective components to reach and eradicate cancer cells. The fact that people think shark cartilage consumption can cure cancer illustrates the serious potential impacts of pseudoscience. Although components of shark cartilage may work as a cancer retardant, crude extracts are ineffective. Efficiencies of technology (e.g., fish harvesting), the power of mass media to reach the lay public, and the susceptibility of the public to pseudoscience amplifies the negative impacts of shark cartilage use. To facilitate the use of reason as the basis of public and private decision-making, the evidence-based mechanisms of evaluation used daily by the scientific community should be added to the training of media and governmental professionals. Increased use of logical, collaborative discussion will be necessary to ensure a sustainable future for man and the biosphere.
To be clear: there is no good evidence that the supplements commercially available currently are effective for any condition.
Now, there is more news on this topic:
The objective of this study was to analyse labelling practices and compliance with regulatory standards for shark cartilage supplements sold in the United States. The product labels of 29 commercial shark cartilage supplements were assessed for compliance with U.S. regulations. Claims, including nutrient content, prohibited disease, and nutritional support statements, were examined for compliance and substantiation.
Overall, 48% of the samples had at least one instance of non-compliance with labelling regulations. The most common labelling violations observed were:
- missing a domestic address/phone number,
- non-compliant nutrient content claim,
- missing/incomplete disclaimer,
- missing statement of identity,
- prohibited disease claims,
- incomplete “Supplement Facts” label.
The use of prohibited disease claims and nutritional support statements without the required disclaimer is concerning from a public health standpoint because consumers may delay seeking professional treatment for a disease.
The authors concluded that the results of this study indicate a need for improved labelling compliance among shark cartilage supplements.
In summary, it seems that shark cartilage supplements are bad for all concerned:
- Patients who rely on them might hasten their death.
- Sharks are becoming an endangered species.
- Consumers are being mislead and misinformed.
There is just one party smiling: the supplement manufacturers who make a healthy profit destroying the health of gullible consumers and patients.
Carl Sagan was a giant in critical thinking and has inspired many, including myself. His book THE DEMON HAUTED WORLD is a classic. In it, he published his ‘BALONEY DETECTION KIT’. As it relates to SCAM and so much more that troubles us today, I today take the liberty of citing it here.
- Wherever possible there must be independent confirmation of the “facts.”
- Encourage substantive debate on the evidence by knowledgeable proponents of all points of view.
- Arguments from authority carry little weight — “authorities” have made mistakes in the past. They will do so again in the future. Perhaps a better way to say it is that in science there are no authorities; at most, there are experts.
- Spin more than one hypothesis. If there’s something to be explained, think of all the different ways in which it could be explained. Then think of tests by which you might systematically disprove each of the alternatives. What survives, the hypothesis that resists disproof in this Darwinian selection among “multiple working hypotheses,” has a much better chance of being the right answer than if you had simply run with the first idea that caught your fancy.
- Try not to get overly attached to a hypothesis just because it’s yours. It’s only a way station in the pursuit of knowledge. Ask yourself why you like the idea. Compare it fairly with the alternatives. See if you can find reasons for rejecting it. If you don’t, others will.
- Quantify. If whatever it is you’re explaining has some measure, some numerical quantity attached to it, you’ll be much better able to discriminate among competing hypotheses. What is vague and qualitative is open to many explanations. Of course there are truths to be sought in the many qualitative issues we are obliged to confront, but finding them is more challenging.
- If there’s a chain of argument, every link in the chain must work (including the premise) — not just most of them.
- Occam’s Razor. This convenient rule-of-thumb urges us when faced with two hypotheses that explain the data equally well to choose the simpler.
- Always ask whether the hypothesis can be, at least in principle, falsified. Propositions that are untestable, unfalsifiable are not worth much. Consider the grand idea that our Universe and everything in it is just an elementary particle — an electron, say — in a much bigger Cosmos. But if we can never acquire information from outside our Universe, is not the idea incapable of disproof? You must be able to check assertions out. Inveterate skeptics must be given the chance to follow your reasoning, to duplicate your experiments and see if they get the same result.
As I said, this is a good book; I warmly recommend it to you.
I have to admit, I only read the DAILY MAIL, if I have to (and certainly not today). This is probably why I missed this article announcing the 1st traditional Chinese medicine to be licensed in the UK.
The plant Sigesbeckia, which has an unpleasant smell, is renowned for its ability to treat aches and pains – including those caused by arthritis. It is the active ingredient in Phynova Joint and Muscle Relief Tablets, which have just been licensed by drug safety watchdog the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency.
The directive also made it more difficult for medicines to get a licence as it demanded they had to have been in use for 30 years, of which at least 15 years had to be in the EU. Some Western herbal medicines have managed to gain licences in a process costing thousands of pounds to verify their ingredients. But the Phynova tablets are the first traditional Chinese medicine to be approved.
Robert Miller, chief executive of Oxford-based Phynova, said he was ‘extremely proud’, adding: ‘This has come from years of working with our Chinese colleagues. ‘Britain can now benefit from having access to high quality, regulated Chinese medicines.’ He also said that the company is planning to apply for a licence for a second traditional Chinese medicine, a cold and flu remedy.
Dr Chris Etheridge, a medical herbalist and adviser to Potter’s Herbals, celebrated the ‘good news’, adding that Sigesbeckia, which is not commonly used in the West, ‘offers an alternative to those who prefer not to take non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs for muscle and joint pain’.
But Michael McIntyre, chairman of the European Herbal and Traditional Medicine Practitioners Association, warned that the new product demonstrates the difficulties the EU rules created for supplying herbal products safely to the public. He said it is ‘almost impossible to satisfy the licensing conditions’. He added that some people have therefore turned to the internet to buy unlicensed products, but this means they have ‘no idea whether they are safe or effective’.
How exciting!
Exciting enough to do a quick search for the evidence. Are there any clinical trials to show or suggest that this herbal remedy does anything other than filling the bank account of the manufacturer? Sadly, the answer seems to be NO! At least, I could not find a single such study (if anyone knows more, I’d be pleased to stand corrected).
Frustrated I looked at the website of the manufacturer. Here I found this:
Exclusively containing Sigesbeckia extract, Phynova Joint and Muscle Relief Tablets is a traditional herbal medicinal product used for the relief of backache, rheumatic, joint and muscle pain as well as minor sports injuries. Sigesbeckia has been used for thousands of years around the world to relieve painful joints and muscles.
Benefits
– Relief from joint & muscle pain
– Gentle on the stomach
– No known side effects
– No known drug indications or contraindications
– Can be taken with or without food
And this:
What can Sigesbeckia be used to treat?
Traditionally used for arthritic pain, rheumatic pain, back pain and sciatica. Today, Sigesbeckia can be used for;
Backache
Back pain can occur through a sprain or strain, spasms, nerve compression, herniated discs and other problems in your lower, middle and upper back.
Poor posture, lifting and stretching, sudden movements placing strain on your lower back and sports injuries, are amongst the main culprits for causing back pain.
Minor sports injuries
Minor sports injuries can be caused by an accident such as a fall or blow, not warming up properly before exercise, pushing yourself too hard and not using the appropriate equipment or perhaps poor technique.
Rheumatic and muscular pain
Common causes of rheumatic and muscle pain can be due to; tension and stress, lack of minerals, certain medication, dehydration, sprains and strains, sleep deficiency, too much physical activity and sometimes other underlying health conditions and diseases.
General aches and pains in muscles and joints
Overexertion due to a new exercise routine or from a sprain or strain can cause general aches and pains in muscles and joints. But so too can modern day busy life. The impact on our bodies can trigger aches and pains in your muscles and joints and lower your resistance to illness and disease.
The Benefit of Sigesbeckia extract
One of the benefits of Sigesbeckia extract, as used in approved licensed products, is that it has no known side effects or interactions with other medications according to the Summary of Product Characteristics (SmPC). Always check that the product you purchase is an approved Traditional Herbal Medicine Product in the UK.
In summary: Look after your joints and muscles with Sigesbeckia
Our bodies are all different, and our approach and tolerances will vary. Used for over a thousand years and known for its anti-inflammatory and mobility benefits alongside being used for joint and muscle pain; Sigesbeckia is a herbal medicine that works best when used over time.
Looking for a traditional remedy for joint and muscle relief? Why not try Sigesbeckia?
But again no sign of a clinical trial to back up this plethora of therapeutic claims. How can this be? The answer lies in the directive mentioned in the Mail article. To obtain a licence that enables the manufacturer to make therapeutic claims, a herbal remedy merely needs to demonstrate that it has been in use for 30 years, of which at least 15 years had to be in the EU.
I think I understand the intention of the directive. But I would nevertheless have thought that, 4 years after obtaining a license, the manufacturer could have conducted a study to test whether the product works. In my view this should be a moral and ethical, if not legal obligation. The ‘test of time’ is woefully insufficient and unreliable and no basis for generating progress or securing the best interests of patients.
Considering the total lack of efficacy and safety data, do you agree that the above comment by Michael McIntyre are ironic to the extreme? And do you agree that manufacturers who manage to obtain such a license should be obliged to deliver a proof of efficacy within a reasonable period of time?
Many patients with chronic pain (CP) are prescribed opioids, a situation which has led to the much-discussed opioid crisis. Integrative medicine (IM), which combines pharmacological and so-called alternative medicine (SCAM), has been proposed as a solution. Yet, the role of SCAM therapies in reducing opioid use remains unclear.
This systematic review explored the effectiveness of the IM approach or any of the SCAM therapies to reduce or cease opioid use in CP patients. Electronic searches yielded 5,200 citations. Twenty-three studies were selected. Eight studies were randomized controlled trials, seven were retrospective studies, four studies were prospective observational, three were cross-sectional, and one was quasi-experimental. The majority of the studies showed that opioid use was reduced significantly after using IM/SCAM. Cannabinoids were among the most commonly investigated approaches in reducing opioid use, followed by multidisciplinary approaches, cognitive-behavioral therapy, and acupuncture. The majority of the studies had limitations related to sample size, duration, and study design.
The authors concluded that there is a small but defined body of literature demonstrating positive preliminary evidence that the IM approach including SCAM therapies can help in reducing opioid use. As the opioid crisis continues to grow, it is vital that clinicians and patients be adequately informed regarding the evidence and opportunities for IM/SCAM therapies for CP.
I am unimpressed by this review.
And here is why:
- Because of their design, most of the included studies do not allow any conclusions about cause and effect.
- The 8 RCTs that would allow such conclusions are mostly of poor quality.
- Some of the 8 RCTs are not even what the review authors claim to be. Here is just one example:
Background: Current levels and dangers of opioid use in the U.S. warrant the investigation of harm-reducing treatment alternatives.
Purpose: A preliminary, historical, cohort study was used to examine the association between enrollment in the New Mexico Medical Cannabis Program (MCP) and opioid prescription use.
Methods: Thirty-seven habitual opioid using, chronic pain patients (mean age = 54 years; 54% male; 86% chronic back pain) enrolled in the MCP between 4/1/2010 and 10/3/2015 were compared to 29 non-enrolled patients (mean age = 60 years; 69% male; 100% chronic back pain). We used Prescription Monitoring Program opioid records over a 21 month period (first three months prior to enrollment for the MCP patients) to measure cessation (defined as the absence of opioid prescriptions activity during the last three months of observation) and reduction (calculated in average daily intravenous [IV] morphine dosages). MCP patient-reported benefits and side effects of using cannabis one year after enrollment were also collected.
Results: By the end of the 21 month observation period, MCP enrollment was associated with 17.27 higher age- and gender-adjusted odds of ceasing opioid prescriptions (CI 1.89 to 157.36, p = 0.012), 5.12 higher odds of reducing daily prescription opioid dosages (CI 1.56 to 16.88, p = 0.007), and a 47 percentage point reduction in daily opioid dosages relative to a mean change of positive 10.4 percentage points in the comparison group (CI -90.68 to -3.59, p = 0.034). The monthly trend in opioid prescriptions over time was negative among MCP patients (-0.64mg IV morphine, CI -1.10 to -0.18, p = 0.008), but not statistically different from zero in the comparison group (0.18mg IV morphine, CI -0.02 to 0.39, p = 0.081). Survey responses indicated improvements in pain reduction, quality of life, social life, activity levels, and concentration, and few side effects from using cannabis one year after enrollment in the MCP (ps<0.001).
Conclusions: The clinically and statistically significant evidence of an association between MCP enrollment and opioid prescription cessation and reductions and improved quality of life warrants further investigations on cannabis as a potential alternative to prescription opioids for treating chronic pain.
This study is evidently NOT an RCT!
Most of the 8 RCTs investigate whether SCAM is useful for weaning opioid-dependent patients off their drug. To equate this with the question whether IM/SCAM can reduce or cease opioid use in CP patients is, I think, wrong. The way to reduce opioid use in CP patients is to prescribe less opioids. And for prescribing less opioids, we need no SCAM but we need to remember what we learned in medical school: opioids are not for routine treatment of CP!
So, why do the authors of this review try to mislead us?
Could it have something to do with some of their affiliations and the bias that goes with it?
- Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine, North York, Ontario, Canada.
- Australian Research Centre in Complementary and Integrative Medicine, University of Technology Sydney, Ultimo, Australia.
- Pacific College of Oriental Medicine, San Diego, California, USA.
What do you think?
Realgar, α-As4S4, is an arsenic sulfide mineral, also known as “ruby sulphur” or “ruby of arsenic”. It is a soft, sectile mineral occurring in monoclinic crystals, or in granular, compact, or powdery form, often in association with the related mineral, orpiment (As2S3).
In Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), realgar is often used in combination with herbs. An investigation found a total of 191 different, realgar-containing traditional Chinese patent medicines, and about 87% of them were for oral application. Realgar is said to:
counteract toxic pathogen both externally and internally. For abscess swelling and sores, it can be used singly or in compound prescription for external application mostly. When taken internally, it is combined with blood-activating and abscess-curing herbs to obtain the action of activating blood to relieve swelling, removing toxicity to cure sores. For example, it is combined with Ru Xiang, Mo Yao and She Xiang in Xing Xiao Wan from Wai Ke Quan Sheng Ji. For itching of skin due to scabies and ringworm, it is often combined with dampness-astringing and itching-relieving herbs to obtain actions of killing parasites and curing ringworm, astringing dampness and relieving itching. For instance, it is combined with the same dose of Bai Fan in powder mixed with clear tea for external application in Er Wei Ba Du San from Yi Zong Jin Jian. For poisonous insect bite, it is mixed with sesame oil and then applied on the afflicted sites.
This herb can kill parasites so it is indicated for intestine track parasites. For roundworm induced abdominal pain, it is often combined with other roundworm-killing herbs to reinforce action. For instance, it is combined with Qian Niu Zi and Bing Lang, etc. in Qian Niu Wan from Shen Shi Zun Sheng Shu. For anus pruritus caused by pinworm, it can be made into gauze strip by mixing with vaseline, and then inserted into the anus.
In addition, according to some ancient formulas, this herb can dispel phlegm and check malaria for internal application, so it can also be indicated for epilepsy, asthma and malaria.
Longtime topical over-dose or oral intake of realgar can cause chronic arsenic poisoning and even death. Chinese authors recently published the case of a 35-year-old Chinese man, who was diagnosed with severe psoriasis and died of fatal acute arsenic poisoning after he applied a local folk prescription ointment containing mainly realgar to the affected skin for about 4 days. The autopsy showed multiple punctate haemorrhages over the limbs, pleural effusion, oedematous lungs with consolidation, mild myocardial hypertrophy and normal-looking kidneys. The histopathological examination of renal tissue showed severe degeneration, necrosis and desquamation of renal tubular epithelial cells, presence of protein cast and a widened oedematous interstitium with interstitial fibrosis. The presence of arsenic in large amount in the ointment (about 6%), in blood (1.76 μg/mL), and in skin (4.71 μg/g), were confirmed analytically. The authors also review 7 similar cases in literature.
My advice is that, when you see recommendations by TCM practitioners like this one
you think again and consider that TCM really is not a form of healthcare that can be trusted to be safe.
So-called alternative medicine (SCAM) could easily be described as a business that exists mainly because it profits from the flaws of conventional medicine. I know, this is not a good definition, and I don’t want to suggest it as one, but I think it highlights an important aspect of SCAM.
Let me explain.
If we ask ourselves why consumers feel attracted to SCAM, we can identify a range of reasons, and several of them relate to the weaknesses of conventional medicine as it is practised today. For instance:
- People feel the need to have more time with their clinician in order to discuss their problems more fully. This means that their GP does not offer them sufficient time, empathy and compassion they crave.
- Patients are weary of the side-effects of drugs and prefer treatments that are gentle and safe. This shows that they realise that conventional medicine can cause harm and they hope to avoid this risk.
- Patients find it often hard to accept that their symptoms are ‘nothing to worry about’ and does not require any treatment at all. They prefer to hear that the clinician knows exactly what is wrong and can offer a therapy that puts it right.
Conventional medicine and the professionals who administer it have many flaws. Most doctors have such busy schedules that there is little time for building an empathetic therapeutic relationship with their patients. Thus they often palm them off with a prescription and fail to discuss the risks in sufficient detail. Even worse, they sometimes prescribe drugs in situations where none are needed and where a reassuring discussion would be more helpful. It is too easy to excuse such behaviours with work pressures; such flaws are serious and cannot be brushed under the carpet in this way.
Recently, the flawed behaviour of doctors has become the focus of media attention in the form of
- opioid over-prescribing
- over-use of anti-biotics.
In both cases, SCAM providers were quick to offer the solution.
- Acupuncturists and chiropractors claim that their treatments are sensible alternatives to opioids. Yet, there is no good evidence that either acupuncture or chiropractic have analgesic effects that are remotely comparable to those of opioids. They only are seemingly successful in cases where opioids were not needed in the first place.
- Homeopaths claim that their remedies can easily replace antibiotics. Yet, there is not a jot of evidence that homeopathics have antibiotic activity. They only are seemingly successful in cases where the antibiotic was not needed in the first place.
In both instances, SCAM is trying to profit from the weaknesses of conventional medicine. In both cases, the offered solutions are clearly bogus. Yet, in both cases, scientifically illiterate politicians are seriously considering the alleged solutions. Few seem to be smart enough to take a step backwards and contemplate the only viable solution to these problems. If doctors over-prescribe, they need to be stopped; and the best way to stop them is to give them adequate support, more time with their patients and adequate recognition of the importance of reassuring and talking to patients when they need it.
To put it differently:
The best way to reduce the use of bogus SCAMs is to make conventional medicine less flawed.
Radiation-induced xerostomia (RIX) is a common, often debilitating, adverse effect of radiation therapy among patients with head and neck cancer. Quality of life can be severely affected, and current treatments have limited benefit. Acupuncture is often recommended, but does it work? This study was aimed at finding out whether acupuncture can prevent RIX in patients with head and neck cancer undergoing radiation therapy.
The 2-center, phase 3, randomized clinical trial compared a standard care control (SCC) with true acupuncture (TA) and sham acupuncture (SA) among patients with oropharyngeal or nasopharyngeal carcinoma who were undergoing radiation therapy in comprehensive cancer centres in the United States and China. Patients were enrolled between December 16, 2011, and July 7, 2015. Final follow-up was August 15, 2016. Analyses were conducted February 1 through 28, 2019. Either TA or SA using a validated acupuncture placebo device were performed 3 times per week during a 6- to 7-week course of radiation therapy. The primary end point was RIX, as determined by the Xerostomia Questionnaire in which a higher score indicates worse RIX, for combined institutions 1 year after radiation therapy ended. Secondary outcomes included incidence of clinically significant xerostomia (score >30), salivary flow, quality of life, salivary constituents, and role of baseline expectancy related to acupuncture on outcomes.
Of 399 patients randomized, 339 were included in the final analysis, including 112 patients in the TA group, 115 patients in the SA group, and 112 patients in the SCC group. For the primary aim, the adjusted least square mean (SD) xerostomia score in the TA group (26.6 [17.7]) was significantly lower than in the SCC group (34.8 [18.7]) (P = .001; effect size = -0.44) and marginally lower but not statistically significant different from the SA group (31.3 [18.6]) (P = .06; effect size = -0.26). Incidence of clinically significant xerostomia 1 year after radiation therapy ended followed a similar pattern, with 38 patients in the TA group (34.6%), 54 patients in the SA group (47.8%), and 60 patients in the SCC group (55.1%) experiencing clinically significant xerostomia (P = .009). Post hoc comparisons revealed a significant difference between the TA and SCC groups at both institutions, but TA was significantly different from SA only at Fudan University Cancer Center, Shanghai, China (estimated difference [SE]: TA vs SCC, -9.9 [2.5]; P < .001; SA vs SCC, -1.7 [2.5]; P = .50; TA vs SA, -8.2 [2.5]; P = .001), and SA was significantly different from SCC only at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas (estimated difference [SE]: TA vs SCC, -8.1 [3.4]; P = .016; SA vs SCC, -10.5 [3.3]; P = .002; TA vs SA, 2.4 [3.2]; P = .45).
The authors concluded that this randomized clinical trial found that TA resulted in significantly fewer and less severe RIX symptoms 1 year after treatment vs SCC. However, further studies are needed to confirm clinical relevance and generalizability of this finding and to evaluate inconsistencies in response to sham acupuncture between patients in the United States and China.
In essence this two-centre study shows that:
- real acupuncture is better than usual care, but the effect size is small and of doubtful clinical relevance;
- real acupuncture is not significantly better than sham acupuncture;
- the findings differ remarkably between the US and the Chinese centre.
I find the last point the most interesting one. We know from previous research that acupuncture studies from China are notoriously unreliable; they never report a negative result and there is evidence that data fabrication is rife in China. The new findings seems to throw more light on this notion. In the US centre, real and sham acupuncture generated practically identical results. By contrast, in the Chinese centre, real acupuncture generated significantly better results than sham. The authors offer several hypotheses to explain this remarkable phenomenon. Yet, in my view, the most likely one is that Chinese researchers are determined to show that acupuncture is effective. Thus all sorts of unconscious or even conscious biases might get introduced into such studies.
In essence, trial therefore confirms that acupuncture is little more than a theatrical placebo, particularly if we consider the US data which, in my opinion, are more trustworthy.
Lorenzo Cohen, Professor of Palliative, Rehabilitation, and Integrative Medicine and director of the Integrative Medicine Program as well as senior author of the paper unsurprisingly disagrees. He was quoted saying: “The evidence is to a point where patients should incorporate acupuncture alongside radiation treatment as a way to prevent the severity of dry mouth symptoms. I think with this study we can add acupuncture to the list for the prevention and treatment of xerostomia, and the guidelines for the use of acupuncture in the oncology setting should be revised to include this important chronic condition.”
Who do you think is closer to the truth?
Recently, we discussed the findings of a meta-analysis which concluded that walking, which is easy to perform and highly accessible, can be recommended in the management of chronic LBP to reduce pain and disability.
At the time, I commented that
this will hardly please the legions of therapists who earn their daily bread with pretending their therapy is the best for LBP. But healthcare is clearly not about the welfare of the therapists, it is/should be about patients. And patients should surely welcome this evidence. I know, walking is not always easy for people with severe LBP, but it seems effective and it is safe, free and available to everyone.
My advice to patients is therefore to walk (slowly and cautiously) to the office of their preferred therapist, have a little rest there (say hello to the staff perhaps) and then walk straight back home.
Now, there is new evidence that seems to confirm what I wrote. An international team of researchers requested individual participant data (IPD) from high-quality randomised clinical trials of patients suffering from persistent low back pain. They conducted descriptive analyses and one-stage IPD meta-analysis. They received IPD for 27 trials with a total of 3514 participants.
For studies included in this analysis, compared with no treatment/usual care, exercise therapy on average reduced pain (mean effect/100 (95% CI) -10.7 (-14.1 to -7.4)), a result compatible with a clinically important 20% smallest worthwhile effect. Exercise therapy reduced functional limitations with a clinically important 23% improvement (mean effect/100 (95% CI) -10.2 (-13.2 to -7.3)) at short-term follow-up.
Not having heavy physical demands at work and medication use for low back pain were potential treatment effect modifiers-these were associated with superior exercise outcomes relative to non-exercise comparisons. Lower body mass index was also associated with better outcomes in exercise compared with no treatment/usual care.
But you cannot dismiss so-called alternative medicine (SCAM), just like that, I hear my chiropractic and other manipulating friends exclaim – at the very minimum, we need direct comparisons of the two approaches!!!
Alright, you convinced me; here you go:
The purpose of this systematic review was to determine the effectiveness of spinal manipulation vs prescribed exercise for patients diagnosed with chronic low back pain (CLBP). Only RCTs that compared head-to-head spinal manipulation to an exercise group were included in this review. Only three RCTs met the inclusion criteria. The outcomes used in these studies included Disability Indexes, Pain Scales and function improvement scales. One RCT found spinal manipulation to be more effective than exercise, and the results of another RCT indicated the reverse. The third RCT found both interventions offering equal effects in the long term. The author concluded that there is no conclusive evidence that clearly favours spinal manipulation or exercise as more effective in treatment of CLBP. More studies are needed to further explore which intervention is more effective.
Convinced?
No?
But I am!
Exercise is preferable to chiropractic and other manipulating SCAMs because:
- It is cheaper.
- It is safer.
- It is readily available to anyone.
- And you don’t have to listen to the bizarre and often dangerous advice many chiros offer their clients.
Maintenance Care is an approach whereby patients have chiropractic manipulations even when symptom-free. Thus, it is an ideal method to keep chiropractors in clover. Previous reviews concluded that evidence behind this strategy is lacking. Since then, more data have emerged. It was therefore timely to review the evidence.
Fourteen original research articles were included in the review. Maintenance Care was defined as a secondary or tertiary preventive approach, recommended to patients with previous pain episodes, who respond well to chiropractic care. Maintenance Care is applied to approximately 30% of Scandinavian chiropractic patients. Both chiropractors and patients believe in the efficacy of Maintenance Care. Four studies investigating the effect of chiropractic Maintenance Care were identified, with disparate results on pain and disability of neck and back pain. However, only one of these studies utilized all the existing evidence when selecting study subjects and found that Maintenance Care patients experienced fewer days with low back pain compared to patients invited to contact their chiropractor ‘when needed’. No studies were found on the cost-effectiveness of Maintenance Care.
The authors concluded that knowledge of chiropractic Maintenance Care has advanced. There is reasonable consensus among chiropractors on what Maintenance Care is, how it should be used, and its indications. Presently, Maintenance Care can be considered an evidence-based method to perform secondary or tertiary prevention in patients with previous episodes of low back pain, who report a good outcome from the initial treatments. However, these results should not be interpreted as an indication for Maintenance Care on all patients, who receive chiropractic treatment.
I have to admit, I have problems with these conclusions.
- Maintenance Care is not normally defined as secondary or tertitary prevention. It also includes primary prevention, which means that chiropractors recommend it for just about anyone. By definition it is long term care, that is not therapeutically necessary, but performed at regular intervals to help prevent injury and enhance quality of life. This form of care is provided after maximal therapeutic benefit is achieved, without a trial of treatment withdrawal, to prevent symptoms from returning or for those without symptoms to promote health or prevent future problems.
- I am not convinced that the evidence would be positive, even if we confined it to secondary and tertiary prevention.
To explain my last point, let’s have a look at the 4 RCT and check whether they really warrant such a relatively positive conclusion.
FIRST STUDY For individuals with recurrent or persistent non-specific low back pain (LBP), exercise and exercise combined with education have been shown to be effective in preventing new episodes or in reducing the impact of the condition. Chiropractors have traditionally used Maintenance Care (MC), as secondary and tertiary prevention strategies. The aim of this trial was to investigate the effectiveness of MC on pain trajectories for patients with recurrent or persistent LBP.
This pragmatic, investigator-blinded, two arm randomized controlled trial included consecutive patients (18–65 years old) with non-specific LBP, who had an early favorable response to chiropractic care. After an initial course of treatment, eligible subjects were randomized to either MC or control (symptom-guided treatment). The primary outcome was total number of days with bothersome LBP during 52 weeks collected weekly with text-messages (SMS) and estimated by a GEE model.
Three hundred and twenty-eight subjects were randomly allocated to one of the two treatment groups. MC resulted in a reduction in the total number of days per week with bothersome LBP compared with symptom-guided treatment. During the 12 month study period, the MC group (n = 163, 3 dropouts) reported 12.8 (95% CI = 10.1, 15.5; p = <0.001) fewer days in total with bothersome LBP compared to the control group (n = 158, 4 dropouts) and received 1.7 (95% CI = 1.8, 2.1; p = <0.001) more treatments. Numbers presented are means. No serious adverse events were recorded.
MC was more effective than symptom-guided treatment in reducing the total number of days over 52 weeks with bothersome non-specific LBP but it resulted in a higher number of treatments. For selected patients with recurrent or persistent non-specific LBP who respond well to an initial course of chiropractic care, MC should be considered an option for tertiary prevention.
SECOND STUDY Back and neck pain are associated with disability and loss of independence in older adults. Whether long‐term management using commonly recommended treatments is superior to shorter‐term treatment is unknown. This randomized clinical trial compared short‐term treatment (12 weeks) versus long‐term management (36 weeks) of back‐ and neck‐related disability in older adults using spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) combined with supervised rehabilitative exercises (SRE).
Eligible participants were ages ≥65 years with back and neck disability for ≥12 weeks. Coprimary outcomes were changes in Oswestry Disability Index (ODI) and Neck Disability Index (NDI) scores after 36 weeks. An intent‐to‐treat approach used linear mixed‐model analysis to detect between‐group differences. Secondary analyses included other self‐reported outcomes, adverse events, and objective functional measures.
THIRD STUDY A prospective single blinded placebo controlled study was conducted. To assess the effectiveness of spinal manipulation therapy (SMT) for the management of chronic nonspecific low back pain (LBP) and to determine the effectiveness of maintenance SMT in long-term reduction of pain and disability levels associated with chronic low back conditions after an initial phase of treatments. SMT is a common treatment option for LBP. Numerous clinical trials have attempted to evaluate its effectiveness for different subgroups of acute and chronic LBP but the efficacy of maintenance SMT in chronic nonspecific LBP has not been studied. Sixty patients, with chronic, nonspecific LBP lasting at least 6 months, were randomized to receive either (1) 12 treatments of sham SMT over a 1-month period, (2) 12 treatments, consisting of SMT over a 1-month period, but no treatments for the subsequent 9 months, or (3) 12 treatments over a 1-month period, along with “maintenance spinal manipulation” every 2 weeks for the following 9 months. To determine any difference among therapies, we measured pain and disability scores, generic health status, and back-specific patient satisfaction at baseline and at 1-, 4-, 7-, and 10-month intervals. Patients in second and third groups experienced significantly lower pain and disability scores than first group at the end of 1-month period (P = 0.0027 and 0.0029, respectively). However, only the third group that was given spinal manipulations (SM) during the follow-up period showed more improvement in pain and disability scores at the 10-month evaluation. In the nonmaintained SMT group, however, the mean pain and disability scores returned back near to their pretreatment level.SMT is effective for the treatment of chronic nonspecific LBP. To obtain long-term benefit, this study suggests maintenance SM after the initial intensive manipulative therapy.
FORTH STUDY Evidence indicates that supervised home exercises, combined or not with manual therapy, can be beneficial for patients with non-specific chronic neck pain (NCNP). The objective of the study is to investigate the efficacy of preventive spinal manipulative therapy (SMT) compared to a no treatment group in NCNP patients. Another objective is to assess the efficacy of SMT with and without a home exercise program.Ninety-eight patients underwent a short symptomatic phase of treatment before being randomly allocated to either an attention-group (n = 29), a SMT group (n = 36) or a SMT + exercise group (n = 33). The preventive phase of treatment, which lasted for 10 months, consisted of meeting with a chiropractor every two months to evaluate and discuss symptoms (attention-control group), 1 monthly SMT session (SMT group) or 1 monthly SMT session combined with a home exercise program (SMT + exercise group). The primary and secondary outcome measures were represented by scores on a 10-cm visual analog scale (VAS), active cervical ranges of motion (cROM), the neck disability index (NDI) and the Bournemouth questionnaire (BQ). Exploratory outcome measures were scored on the Fear-avoidance Behaviour Questionnaire (FABQ) and the SF-12 Questionnaire. Our results show that, in the preventive phase of the trial, all 3 groups showed primary and secondary outcomes scores similar to those obtain following the non-randomised, symptomatic phase. No group difference was observed for the primary, secondary and exploratory variables. Significant improvements in FABQ scores were noted in all groups during the preventive phase of the trial. However, no significant change in health related quality of life (HRQL) was associated with the preventive phase. This study hypothesised that participants in the combined intervention group would have less pain and disability and better function than participants from the 2 other groups during the preventive phase of the trial. This hypothesis was not supported by the study results. Lack of a treatment specific effect is discussed in relation to the placebo and patient provider interactions in manual therapies. Further research is needed to delineate the specific and non-specific effects of treatment modalities to prevent unnecessary disability and to minimise morbidity related to NCNP. Additional investigation is also required to identify the best strategies for secondary and tertiary prevention of NCNP.
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I honestly do not think that the findings from these 4 small trials justify the far-reaching conclusion that Maintenance Care can be considered an evidence-based method… For that statement to be evidence-based, one would need to see more and better studies. Therefore, the honest conclusion, I think, is that maintenance care is not supported by sound evidence for effectiveness; as chiropractic manipulations are costly and not risk-free, its risk/benefit balance fails to be positive. Therefore, this approach cannot be recommended.
Tiger Balm (TB) ointments are Chinese topical remedies, often used for pain relief available as over-the-counter medications. TB is clearly popular, but does it work? The aim of this systematic review was to find out by assessing the efficacy, safety and tolerability of TB ointments.
A total of 12 studies were included (five on TB ointments efficacy, whereas seven on their safety and tolerability). Two cases of dermatitis and one of cheilitis likely ascribable to the use of TB ointments have been reported. Based on available studies, it might be estimated that around 4% [95% CI, 3%-5%] of patients with history of contact skin allergy could be positive if patch tested with TB ointments, therefore caution is recommended in the use of TB among these subjects.
The authors concluded that, according to retrieved evidence, TB ointments might be useful for the management of pain due to tension headache, and they seem capable of increasing leg blood flow if combined with massage. Considering available evidence on topical products with camphor, TB ointments shouldn’t be used in children, as well as in pregnant or lactating women. Chronic use, large amounts of balm, and the application on damaged skin must be avoided too. Further studies are recommended.
I had to laugh out loud when reading these conclusions:
- That TB MIGHT be useful is hardly worth writing home about. A systematic review should tell us whether there is any good evidence THAT it is useful.
- That TB seems capable of increasing leg blood flow is also nonsense. Firstly, anything increases blood flow IF COMBINED WITH MASSAGE. Secondly, why would anyone want to increase leg blood flow? Ahh of course: if you have leg ischaemia, e. g. in intermittent claudication. But then increasing blood flow of the skin of the leg is likely to be counter-productive, as this would shunt blood away from the already oxygen-starved muscles.
So, what evidence is there that TB might be effective? It turns out that there is all of ONE small randomised clinical trial that is over 20 years old which delivers a positive result. In view of this, I find it hard to resist re-writing the conclusions as follows:
TB IS A CHINESE REMEDY THAT CAN CAUSE ADVERSE EFFECTS AND FOR WHICH THERE IS NO GOOD EVIDENCE OF EFFICACY. ITS RISK/BENEFIT BALANCE IS THEREFORE NOT DEMONSTRABLY POSITIVE.
