Utilization of Manipulative Treatment for Spine and Shoulder Conditions Between Different Medical Providers in a Large Military Hospital.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the use of manipulative treatment for shoulder and spine conditions among various provider types.

DESIGN: Retrospective observational cohort.

SETTING: Single military hospital.

PARTICIPANTS: Consecutive sample of patients (N=7566) seeking care for an initial spine or shoulder condition from January 1 to December 31, 2009.

INTERVENTIONS: Manipulative treatment (eg, manual therapy, spinal and joint manipulation).

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: Manipulation treatment was identified with procedure billing codes in the medical records. Spine and shoulder conditions were identified by using the International Classification of Diseases, 9th Revision codes. All data were abstracted from the Department of Defense Military Health System Management and Analysis Tool.

RESULTS: Of 7566 total patients seeking care, 2014 (26.6%) received manipulative treatment at least once, and 1883 of those received this treatment in a military facility (24.7%). Manipulative treatment was used most often for thoracic conditions and least often for shoulder conditions (50.8% and 24.2% of all patients). There was a total of 6706 unique medical visits with a manipulative treatment procedure (average of 3.3 manipulative treatment procedure visits per patient).

CONCLUSIONS: Manipulative treatment utilization rates for shoulder and spine conditions ranged from 26.6% to 50.2%. Chiropractors used manipulation the most and physical therapists the least.