History

Dr. Daniel David Palmer performed the first documented chiropractic adjustments. As a teacher and healer, he was studying the cause and effect of disease. The patient of Dr. Palmer's worked in the same building where Dr. Palmer was conducting his studies. The patient complained of hearing problems, which he stated had occurred over a period of seventeen years. After an exam, Dr. Palmer suspected that a vertebra might be out of place and he repositioned the vertebra with a gentle thrust. After several treatments, the patient's hearing was restored.

Since that first chiropractic adjustment performed by Dr. Palmer, the art and science of chiropractic care has progressed significantly. Currently, improved diagnostic procedures, highly sophisticated equipment, and scientific research have all given credence to chiropractic care. Acceptance among many types of health care professionals continues to grow, making chiropractic a well-known and popular choice for many healthcare needs.

A 1993 study in the New England Journal of Medicine reported that "The estimated number of visits made in 1990 to providers of unconventional therapy was greater than the number of visits to all primary care medical nationwide," and chiropractic was among the most frequently used non-medical therapies. A follow up report published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1998 found that the use of non-medical 2treatments had increased significantly since the 1990 survey, with "overall prevalence of use increased by 25%, total visits by an estimated 47%, and expenditures on services provided by practitioners of alternative therapies by an estimated 45%." Of the survey respondents, one in nine (11%) had used chiropractic care within the previous year.