Dr. Hoffman, the president of ChiroSecure, in his recent video hangout with Dr. Clum, provided an analysis about the recent episode of Dr. Oz Show, which tackled about the whole stroke association with chiropractors. The show specifically discussed Katie May’s death.
In the show, three important questions were raised in relation to Katie May’s case:
- Did chiropractic play a role in the circumstance of Katie May?
- How important is the history, the patient history, in helping to alert a chiropractor to a possible problem that is beyond simple neck pain when a patient presents for neck pain?
- What is the profession doing to address this whole situation?
Dr. Hoffman and Dr. Clum agreed that the chiropractic industry was well represented in the person of Dr. Shoshany, was who was tapped by the show to be the person that would speak for the profession in this environment.
With regards to question number one…
Dr. Hoffman and Dr. Clum agreed that Dr. Shoshany was able to answer it “very succinctly, very comfortably” and ” he did a wonderful job of representing the profession in that environment” by using as an example a mechanism of causation associated with vertebral artery dissection called a bow hunter’s stroke. A case that is parallel to the scenario of Katie May holding an odd posture during a photoshoot that ultimately began this entire process, and she emerged from the photo shoot with a neck pain that in our view was likely the dissection moment for her.
To get an answer from a clinical perspective, Dr. Oz then turned to a neurologist, a Dr. Brockington, from Mount Sinai Hospital in New York City, and Dr. Brockington made reference to the fact that she sees strokes all day long of all types and that she sees some that have obvious causes.
Dr. Hoffman and Dr. Clum agreed that Dr. Brockington commentary was very supportive to the chiropractic industry. Though, she did not say ‘yes’ or ‘no’ on question number one, she did talk about the fact that the “that the mechanism of this stroke can be varied in terms of its origin and that it is again not at all uncommon in her world among seemingly healthy persons in their middle-aged years to develop this stroke without any activity or problems precipitating it. It just simply happens.”
On question number two…
Dr. Shoshany made a point that it is important that clinicians know that the history of a patient is really the core of the information that “we begin with and often end with in the relationship to patient care” and that the “history is critical.” He was able to highlight the fact that it is important “that the chiropractor understands if there is any history of stroke or dissection or aneurysm in the individual’s circumstances or in their family’s circumstances, went on to reference the presence of collagen disorders as ones that have a tendency to precipitate fragility in arteries that would lead to dissection.”
On question number three…
Dr. Shoshany went through the explanation of what his experiences was, then what the profession’s experience had been in this regard. Advice was also given to patients “to be fully honest with their chiropractor about any other symptoms that might be accompanying their neck pain.”
Overall, Dr. Hoffman and Dr. Clum agreed that the chiropractic industry was well represented.
Dr. Clum, in his own word, said, “I think we put important elements on the table in the course of the six-and- a-half- minute segment that represents us well. It’s up to the individual chiropractor now to carry on from that point forward.”
Dr. Hoffman, again, stressed the importance of appropriate informed consent. In his own words, he said, “One of the things for our doctors to all remember is if a patient comes in to you and there is any adverse situation, stop playing the hero. We’ve said this over and over and over again. Nine-one- one is on your phone for a reason. Separate and distinct from that, you still need to use an appropriate informed consent. We spent years at this point developing one that is workable for both the doctor and the patient, and document, document, document, because the more information that you have, the better off you’re going to be as the doctor.”
Takeaways from Dr. Hoffman’s and Dr. Clum’s analysis on Dr. Oz Show (Katie May episode):
- Informed consent is an expected, appropriate and responsible activity on the part of the practitioner to provide to the patient.
- It is important to double-check, make sure your examination, it should be your history procedures are correct.
- Every patient’s important. Every adjustment is important. They all deserve the exact attention and skill and diligence.
- The science is on our side in this discussion. Chiropractors should review the Cassidy Study from 2008, the Kosloff Study from 2015 and the Church Study from 2016,
Watch the full video hangout here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n3z4X7kHLMc