A narrative review of the published chiropractic literature regarding older patients from 2001-2010

The purpose of this article was to perform a narrative review of the chiropractic literature regarding older patients between 2001 and 2010.

A three step search strategy of the literature involved electronic searching, hand searching and reference tracking.

One hundred and eighty eight articles germane to chiropractic geriatric practice and education were retrieved.

Compared to the review of the literature conducted prior to 2000, the number of references on chiropractic geriatric education increased from 3 to 11, the number of demographic studies increased from 9 to 18, the number of case reports increased from 25 to 83, the number of clinical trials increased from 4 to 21 (only two RCTs found) and the number of references on clinical guidelines and general clinical information increased from 18 to 55.

This review found 188 retrievable articles available to practitioners to effectively care plan for their older patients, a better than three fold increase in the number of references found during a similar review conducted at the end of the previous decade. However, there is clearly a gap in the evidence base of chiropractic geriatric care, particularly the under-representation of clinical trials of all kinds involving older chiropractic patients.