Veterans' back-pain profiles were similar, but sleep and mental health differed
A baseline comparison found more sleep disturbance and mental health difficulties among younger veterans entering a chiropractic-care trial.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
Among veterans entering a chiropractic trial for longstanding low back pain, younger and older participants had broadly similar reported pain profiles. Younger veterans more often reported mental health difficulties and sleep disturbance. These baseline patterns describe who entered the study; they do not show that age caused those differences or that chiropractic care improved any outcome.
These were trial participants seeking chiropractic care, which limits extension to all veterans. The cross-sectional comparison cannot establish causes or tell whether either age group responded differently to treatment.
What researchers found
Sleep disturbance at baseline
Younger versus older veterans at trial entry (p < .001); these percentages describe age-group differences before treatment outcomes were assessed.
What this analysis can answer
Researchers compared records and questionnaires collected before treatment outcomes were assessed. Although the parent study randomized chiropractic dosage, this report compares age groups at entry and therefore answers a descriptive question.
Similar pain, different accompanying problems
Both age groups reported substantial pain burdens, while patterns of medication use and mental health differed. The comparison highlights differences accompanying back pain without showing which factors account for those differences.
The original publication
Age differences in demographic and clinical characteristics among veterans with chronic low back pain: a cross-sectional study of baseline findings from the Veteran Response to Dosage in Chiropractic Therapy (VERDICT) trial.
Salsbury SA, Long CR, McCarey J et al.
Chiropr Man Therap · 2025
- PubMed ID
- 41084026
- Record checked
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