Originally Published Thursday, September 10, 2015 12:00 AM
After its initiation in 1895, the profession of chiropractic continued its development in the early 1900s. By 1906, there were seven fairly well known chiropractic schools, and the very first chiropractic law in any state was proposed and nearly gained passage. Both D. D. and B. J. Palmer were indicted for practicing medicine without a license in 1906, and the Universal Chiropractors' Association (UCA) was formed. Membership dues paid to a central treasury were used to cover the costs of legal services. By 1908, J. N. Stone D.C. founds a Chiropractic practice in San Antonio. By 1910 Stone charters and presides over the Chiropractic College of San Antonio.
It is speculated by sports historians that the first professional athlete to receive chiropractic care was Mordecai (Three-Finger) Brown in 1911.
On April 16, 1913, The Texas Chiropractic College (TCC) was chartered for a term of twenty-five years by the State of Texas naming A.R. Littrell, president, J.N.Stone, secretary, and F.S. Hayes, treasurer. Littrell presided over the college from 1913 to c. 1918. 1915, the first state chiropractic licensing laws are established in Arkansas, Kansas and Iowa.
By the early 1920s the number of professional sports was growing, and the profession of chiropractic was rapidly expanding as well. Chiropractic colleges nationwide exceeded eighty in number, including at least three located in Texas.
It was inevitable that professional athletes would turn to chiropractic. Baseball legends Babe Ruth, Lou Gherig, and Joe DiMaggio among others were known to to have utilized chiropractic in the 1920s. Ever since, athletes of all levels have made use of chiropractic to keep their bodies in fit condition.
Sports chiropractic, also known as chiropractic sports sciences/medicine, is a specialty of chiropractic. Specialist status is achieved in America through the Certified Chiropractic Sports Physician (CCSP), or the Diplomate of the American Chiropractic Board of Sports Physicians (DACBSP), a three-year post-doctoral program. Specialty certification is a FICS prerequisite for a Doctor to be approved to participate in any International sporting event. The focus of these chiropractic specialists is to provide care in the conservative management, rehabilitation and performance optimization of neuromusculoskeletal system for athletic populations and to participate in a multi-disciplinary sports injury care environment.
Chiropractic doctors first began treating Olympic athletes at the Olympic Games in 1976. The first official appointment of a chiropractor to the US team began with the 1980 Winter Olympic Games, and subsequently a program was developed to screen Chiropractic Doctors at the Olympic Training Center. Sports chiropractic came of age when the Fédération Internationale de Chiropratique du Sport (FICS) was formed in 1987. FICS has promoted the participation of chiropractors in sports medicine treatment teams, and has organized chiropractors to provide treatment at many national and international sporting events including the winter and summer Olympics. For the 2008 Olympic games a chiropractic doctor was appointed the medical director of the US team, another chiropractic first.
The importance of doctors of chiropractic to the amateur and professional athlete alike has steadily progressed. In 1989 San Francisco 49er quarterback Joe Montana was treated by a chiropractic doctor before a live audience during the 1989 Super Bowl. In the late 1990s the stories of professional baseball players Barry Bonds and Wade Boggs being helped by chiropractic care made news. Many athletes like heavyweight boxing champion Evander Holyfield; NBA all-star Charles Barkley; Olympian decathlon gold medalist Dan O'Brien; Olympic beach volleyball gold medalists Karch Kiraly and Kent Steffes, and a very many others also make regular use of chiropractic. Giants outfielder Barry Bonds went so far as to state: "I think it should be mandatory for athletes to see a chiropractor.”
Utilization of chiropractic within the professional sports world has also grown steadily. In 2002, 31% of National Football League teams used a chiropractor in an official capacity on their medical staff, and in 2006, a study analyzing Division I NCAA college athletes found that chiropractic usage was reported by 39% of respondents. Twelve years later, as of the 2014-2015 NFL season, all 32 NFL teams now have an official team Chiropractor; 27 of a total of 30 Major League Baseball teams have an official team Chiropractor, and almost every NBA team has an official team Chiropractor as well.
Many chiropractors help amateur and professional athletes alike. Optimum athletic performance requires proper biomechanics so that stresses remain as low and as symmetric as possible to prevent injury. Studies now demonstrate improved function from spinal manipulation that may be related to enhanced performance.
For too long early signs of injuries and degeneration of the spine from sports have escaped scrutiny and thus effective management strategies. No longer is the treatment for pain control the only treatment considered. The sports specialist now recognizes soft tissue injuries early and has a wide range of useful functional options for early therapeutic intervention to restore improved function.
Dysfunction may exist with or without the presence of symptoms or the awareness of the participant. Keeping the athletes’ bodies functioning properly, allows them to be more productive and can translate into more team wins. Next to talent, keeping the body in balance is the edge athletes need to take them to the next level. Chiropractic has a long history of working to help the athlete operate at optimal levels, and the chiropractic sports specialist brings sports medicine beyond merely the management of pain.
