CALIFORNIA CHIROPRACTORS. AN EPIDEMIOLOGICAL STUDY OF CAUSES OF DEATH AMONG THEM AND OTHER CHARACTERISTICS.

Records of deaths among California chiropractors in a five-year period were studied to ascertain causes of death and other characteristics-especially because of the author's interest in ascertaining whether leukemia and other deleterious effects of ionizing radiation could be observed among this occupationally-exposed group. The findings do not permit a conclusion that the mortality experience of California chiropractors differs substantially from that of a similar population of non-chiropractors, but the finding of 1.68 times the expected leukemia mortality is in accord with previous studies which show increased leukemic mortality among populations which have had unusually great exposure to ionizing radiation. The finding that only 3 per cent of the death certificates of California chiropractors were signed by other chiropractors, and that 56 per cent were signed by doctors of medicine indicates that very few chiropractors seek diagnosis and treatment from other chiropractors when seriously or terminally ill.