In 2019, an extensive search was undertaken by Safer Care Victoria on behalf of the Victorian Government to identify evidence of harm sustained by children who had received spinal manipulation. This included a literature review by Cochrane Australia, capture of patient complaints and practitioner notification data from Australian complaints and regulatory agencies, capture of Australian insurance claim data from the primary insurers for registered chiropractors, and stakeholder feedback from both online consultations. This extensive search identified very little evidence of patient harm occurring in Australia. In particular, there were no patient complaints or practitioner notifications that arose from significant harm to a child following spinal manipulation.

The Queensland Office of the Health Ombudsman reported that since its inception on 1 July 2014 it has not received any complaints relating to spinal manipulation of children under 12 years.

The Victorian Health Complaints Commissioner (HCC) reported no complaints against a chiropractor related to the treatment of a child.

No cases were reported where an insurance agent has had to defend or settle such a claim.

The public responses indicated very strong consumer satisfaction. Of all respondents, 99.7% (21,750) reported a positive experience with the chiropractic care of their children.

The overwhelming majority of parents/guardians reported that chiropractic spinal care helped their child, with 98% (21,474) indicating that their child improved after treatment.

A 2019 prospective observational study collected data from 1092 mothers of infants receiving chiropractic care. In total, 82% (n = 797) reported definite improvement of their infants on a global impression of change scale. As well, 95% (n = 475) reported feeling that the care was cost-effective, and 90.9% (n = 712) rated their satisfaction 8 or higher on an 11-point scale. Minor self-limiting side effects were reported (5.8%, n = 42/727) but no adverse events. (Miller et al, 2019)

Chiropractic care carries low risk for children because chiropractors are trained to suitably modify techniques to suit the child’s age, muscle development and presentation. These are gentle and precise procedures.