Thoracic Pain: An Observational Study of Chiropractic Treatment on Pain and Wellbeing within a Student Setting

Objective: The purpose of this study is to observe non-specific thoracic spinal pain and wellbeing in patients before and after Chiropractic intervention in a student setting. Design and Setting: A prospective practice-based observational study of patients receiving Chiropractic treatment for non-specific thoracic spinal pain (NS-TSP) presenting to RMIT students in teaching clinics. Clinical Features: 23 patients were treated within a multi-modal therapy framework. Methods: Outcome measures: Short form RAND-36 and Short form McGill Pain Questionnaire were administered on the initial consultation before treatment and again after the sixth treatment. Results: The short form McGill (Total, VAS, PPI) and the physical component summary of the Short form Rand-36 revealed a statistical significance post treatment (p<0.05). No significant difference could be detected on the Mental component summary of RAND-36 (p=0.08). Conclusion: It would appear that there is statistical improvement of pain and physical health status of wellbeing following a multimodal treatment approach by senior Chiropractic students. No significant change was recorded in the mental component summary of RAND-36. Further investigation of NS-TSP is warranted due to the lack of research currently available.