CBP Research and Evidence

Chiropractic BioPhysics

What the published research covers, where it comes from, and where to read it for yourself.

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Why we are sharing this

People ask us what the research behind Chiropractic BioPhysics (CBP) actually says, and they are right to ask. This page explains what has been published, who has published it, and where you can read the original papers yourself.

We describe the research in our own words and link to the sources so you can check everything. The full publication lists are kept by the CBP organisation and its non-profit research arm, and we link to them at the bottom of the page.

CBP in brief

CBP is a chiropractic method that focuses on measuring posture and the shape of the spine, then comparing it with a reference model of healthy alignment known as the Harrison spinal model. The idea is to plan care around what is measured, rather than around symptoms alone.

Measure. A posture assessment and physical examination, with x-ray referral only when clinically indicated.
Plan. Adjustments, exercises and traction (decompression), chosen for the individual.
Re-check. Repeating the measurements at set points to see whether anything has changed.

CBP also uses what it calls mirror image positioning, which means moving the body in the opposite direction to a posture fault during exercises and traction. CBP’s published protocol describes three stages: relief of symptoms, structural rehabilitation, then stabilisation. How that looks for you depends on your assessment. Read CBP’s own explanations on What is CBP and CBP protocol of care.

How much research is there?

According to the publications page of CBP NonProfit (checked on 23 October 2026), CBP research now includes about 381 peer-reviewed publications across 63 journals. The page breaks them down roughly like this:

15 systematic literature reviews
35 clinical trials: 21 randomised controlled trials, 7 non-randomised controlled trials and 7 prospective cohort studies
178 case reports and case series
39 letters to the editor and 5 textbook chapters

The CBP organisation describes CBP as the most-published named chiropractic technique in Index Medicus and PubMed, which is why we describe it as the most researched chiropractic technique. These counts change as new papers appear, so use the live list for the current numbers.

Randomised controlled trials

Randomised controlled trials are the study design researchers rely on most when asking whether a treatment works. These are the trials listed by CBP NonProfit for which we have a link. The topics are summarised by us, so open the paper for the exact methods and results.

Year	Authors	Journal	Topic	Link
2012	Diab & Moustafa	J Manipulative Physiol Ther	Rehabilitation programme for chronic mechanical low back pain	PubMed
2012	Moustafa & Diab	Clin Rehabil	Extension traction for disc-related lumbosacral radiculopathy	PubMed
2013	Diab & Moustafa	J Back Musculoskelet Rehabil	Lumbar extension traction and sagittal alignment	PubMed
2016	Moustafa et al.	Arch Phys Med Rehabil	Corrective orthotic added to rehabilitation for cervical radiculopathy	PubMed
2017	Moustafa et al.	Eur J Phys Rehabil Med	Normalising cervical configuration, with dizziness and neck pain followed for one year	PubMed
2017	Moustafa et al.	J Back Musculoskelet Rehabil	Cervical lordosis and flexion-extension movement	PubMed
2018	Moustafa et al.	BMC Musculoskelet Disord	Cervical myofascial pain, one-year follow-up	PubMed
2018	Mageed et al.	J Medical Sciences	Cervical lordosis rehabilitation and non-specific neck pain	Full text
2021	Moustafa et al.	J Athl Train	Autonomic function and cervical sensorimotor control	PubMed
2021	Moustafa et al.	Heliyon	Cervicogenic headache with forward head posture, two-year pilot (60 participants)	PubMed
2021	Moustafa et al.	Sci Rep	Central conduction time in people without symptoms, placebo-controlled	PubMed
2022	Moustafa, Diab & Harrison	J Clin Med	Cervical lordosis rehabilitation for radiculopathy, two-year follow-up	Full text
2022	Youssef et al.	J Clin Med	Feasibility pilot of an adjustable 3D orthotic for neck pain	Full text
2022	Moustafa et al.	J Clin Med	Reducing thoracic hyperkyphosis in chronic neck pain	Full text
2022	Moustafa, Diab & Harrison	J Clin Med	Cervical configuration and lumbosacral radiculopathy	Full text
2023	Suwaidi et al.	J Clin Med	Two approaches to forward head posture in older adults	PubMed

Titles and links are taken from the CBP NonProfit publications list. The full list also includes trials still in press or under review.

Non-randomised trials, reviews and cohorts

Earlier CBP work used non-randomised controlled designs, where participants were not randomly assigned to groups. The following are listed by CBP NonProfit.

Year	Authors	Journal	Link
2002	Harrison et al.	Arch Phys Med Rehabil	PubMed
2002	Harrison et al.	Arch Phys Med Rehabil	PubMed
2003	Harrison et al.	J Manipulative Physiol Ther	PubMed
2004	Harrison et al.	J Rehabil Res Dev	PubMed
2005	Harrison et al.	Eur Spine J	PubMed

Systematic reviews and cohorts. Examples include a 2018 systematic review of thoracic hyperkyphosis (Oakley et al., J Contemp Chiropr), a 2024 systematic review of lumbar measurement reliability (Betz et al., J Clin Med), and prospective cohort studies in Scientific Reports 2024 and Scientific Reports 2025.

Case reports. The largest group of CBP papers are single-patient reports and small case series, for example Miller et al., 2017, J Phys Ther Sci and Haas et al., 2023, Cureus. Case reports show what was seen in individual people. They cannot show that care works for everyone, so we treat them as a starting point only.

What the research looks at

Neck posture and cervical curve, including forward head posture, neck pain and headaches that come from the neck. See our neck pain and headaches page.
Lumbar alignment and traction, including low back pain and leg pain linked to the lower back. See back pain, sciatica and spinal traction and decompression.
Thoracic kyphosis and posture, covered on our posture page.
Scoliosis, including CBP’s mirror image approach. See scoliosis and kids and teens.
Measurement itself, such as how reliably x-ray and posture measurements can be repeated.

Reading the evidence fairly

We think you should see the limits as well as the strengths:

Much of the CBP research was carried out by researchers connected to the CBP organisation. Independent replication matters, and more of it is welcome.
Some of the earlier work was non-randomised, and many papers are case reports, which are weaker evidence.
Studies describe average results in the people studied. Your results may be different.
Visit numbers and timeframes in CBP’s protocol material come from its own early studies. We plan your care individually and re-check it as we go.
Research on a technique does not mean it suits every person or condition, which is why we start with an assessment and refer on when needed.

We do not promise outcomes, and nothing on this page is personal medical advice.

Watch: Dr Andrew on CBP

CBP traction and its potential for real change

Why I chose to specialise in CBP

Common questions

Is CBP evidence-based?

There is a large body of published CBP research, including randomised controlled trials, summarised above. There are also limits, which we set out honestly on this page. We combine that research with your own assessment results.

Do I need an X-ray?

Not always. We only refer for X-rays when they are clinically indicated.

Can I read the studies myself?

Yes. Every table above links to the paper or its abstract, and the full lists are on the CBP NonProfit website.

Where can I read how CBP is applied here?

See our CBP page and our spinal traction and decompression page.

Related information

Chiropractic BioPhysics (CBP) · More research and resources · Spinal traction and decompression · Back pain · Neck pain and headaches · Sciatica and leg pain · Disc injuries and bulges · Posture · Scoliosis