05/03/2026
This is what the research has to say about chiropractic care post-surgery:
Try as we may to prevent it, surgery cannot always be avoided. But even in these cases, chiropractic care has a role to play.
Multiple case reports have been published detailing the care of athletes post-injury and subsequent surgery. These case reports feature athletes participating in soccer, crossfit, brazilian jiu-jitsu, and rugby. All cases reported a successful recovery and return to sport, following dynamic approaches to care, often including multiple methods. [Sharp, 2024; Kan, 2024; Lee, 2022; Swain, 2022]
It is not uncommon for elite athletes to be receiving care from multiple modalities and these case reports illustrate how chiropractic care can be an important part of an athlete’s recovery journey, even after surgery.
Another area that features in post-surgery chiropractic research is care following cervical spine disc replacement. Three cases of pain returning after disc replacement procedures highlight effective chiropractic management post-surgery. [Mortenson, 2022] One case follows a patient receiving chiropractic care after two cervical total disk replacement surgeries, with the patient self-reporting that their pain had decreased more than 70% from presurgery levels. [Bloink, 2021]
Another post-surgery case detailed the improvement in headaches and neck pain following spinal fusion surgery. Following a thorough evaluation, the patient received 4 weeks of care and reported a reduction in pain intensity and range of motion. These improvements remained at the 3-month follow up, with spaced-out visits. [Berner, 2025]
A patient presented for care following surgery for cauda equina syndrome, experiencing lower back pain, paraesthesia, leg weakness, and urinary incontinence. After 12 months of care, involving a variety of chiropractic manipulative techniques, the patient reported a reduction in lower back and leg pain and was able to reduce their use of opioid medications. [Cook, 2021]
A course of chiropractic care, with myofascial release, resolved numbness and swelling in the hands following a double mastectomy. Shoulder range of motion also improved following care. [Hodges, 2022]
This area of research consists entirely of case report data and while the findings are encouraging, there is a significant need for more research and larger scale studies.
