Free Republic

For the next four years, Dr. Scott Fredin can't buy pornography or use the Internet without a probation officer's approval. The police can drop by at any time to see if he has been drinking. As a registered sex offender, he must tell authorities every time he moves or gets a new job. One thing the 41-year-old chiropractor won't have to do, however, is tell his clients he spent two years in jail for sexually assaulting two patients. This month, more than six years after revoking Fredin's license for the felony convictions, the state Board of Chiropractic Examiners granted Fredin's...

Going to a chiropractor to treat back pain could be a waste of time, according to a new study which found that having your spine manipulated does nothing to speed up recovery. Current treatment guidelines for acute back pain recommend that, in the first instance, GPs advise patients to remain active and avoid bed rest and take paracetamol for the pain. If that does not work, patients are referred for spinal manipulative therapy and given non-steroidal anti-inflammatory (NSAID) drugs such as ibuprofen and diclofenac to treat the pain. Mark Hancock, of the back pain research group at the University of...

SACRAMENTO — Shortly before she was fired from her job Friday, the executive director of a state board appointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger accused its members of attempting to undermine a criminal prosecution of chiropractors and interfering with disciplinary actions against members of the profession. Catherine Hayes told the California Board of Chiropractic Examiners, which includes two friends from the governor's bodybuilding days, that it has been acting illegally and has deprived Californians of a strong regulatory agency that is supposed to protect the public. Hayes read her statement to board members, who then went into a closed session to...

Segway is recalling all 23,500 of the self-balancing scooters it has shipped because of a software glitch that can make its wheels unexpectedly reverse direction, throwing off the rider -- and in at least one incident, break some teeth. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission on Thursday said consumers should stop using the vehicles immediately. Segway is cooperating on the voluntary recall.

Ohio investigates provider who offers to reach into past to heal patients COLUMBUS, Ohio - A chiropractor who claims he can treat anyone by reaching back in time to when an injury occurred has attracted the attention of state regulators. The Ohio State Chiropractic Board, in a notice of hearing, has accused James Burda of Athens of being "unable to practice chiropractic according to acceptable and prevailing standards of care due to mental illness, specifically, Delusional Disorder, Grandiose Type." Burda denied that he is mentally ill. He said he possesses a skill he discovered by accident while driving six years...