Family of dead woman loses right to sue chiropractic organizations

She died of stroke following neck manipulation

Chiropractors have won a round in an ongoing fight over the safety of a controversial neck-pulling treatment.

Ontario Superior Court Justice John Cavarzan has ruled that three chiropractic organizations and their leaders can't be sued by the family of a Toronto woman who died of a stroke following treatment.

The family of Lana Dale Lewis, however, is free to pursue its lawsuit against chiropractor Philip Emanuele, who treated the 45-year-old woman.

Cavarzan found there was ``no reasonable cause of action'' against the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College, the College of Chiropractors of Ontario, and the Canadian Chiropractic Protective Association.

Furthermore, the plaintiff - Adam Lewis, Lana Dale Lewis's son - was ordered to pay up to $6,000 to cover the court costs of those organizations.

``We were delighted,`` Jean Moss, president of the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College, said yesterday. ``We feel very strongly it was a frivolous suit.''

The finding comes as York University's senate continues studying a potential affiliation with the college. Several York faculty members are fighting that marriage, warning it would tarnish the university's reputation.

But the court ruling should make it easier for members of the senate to accept a union with the chiropractic college, Moss said. ``Having this sort of result will make them feel a lot more comfortable.''

Meanwhile, the family of Lana Dale Lewis is determined to pursue its case against Emanuele, said Mike Ford, the woman's son-in-law and family spokesperson.

``We'll continue with the lawsuit,'' he said. ``The court ruling in no way opines on the behaviour of the individual.''

Emanuele said the lawsuit was ``totally outrageous and unfounded.'' ``They're all unfounded allegations,'' he said. ``When we go to court I'll stand there and fight because I have nothing to hide.''

Lewis, who was being treated for migraine headaches, was fine when she left his office, Emanuele said. ``She was talking with my secretary.''

Chiropractic neck adjustments can trigger a stroke by damaging the lining of an artery supplying the brain. But there is great disagreement between the profession and its critics about the magnitude of this risk.

Chiropractors have long held that it's a one-in-a-million chance, while high-profile opponents, like Montreal's Dr. Murray Katz, warn it might be as high as one in 1,000.

He called for an end to chiropractic neck manipulation in a lecture yesterday, attended by more than 100 doctors and other medical specialists at Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Science Centre.

In vulnerable people, a stroke can result even from a rapid head turn, while driving or playing golf. ``If it can happen from turning your head, why pull and twist on the neck?'' Katz told the gathering.

Neurologists studying the issue have linked neck manipulations to 21 cases of full-blown stroke or milder brain attacks last year, researcher Dr. Vadim Beletsky told the Sunnybrook gathering.

A damaged neck artery can produce a stroke days, weeks, and even months after an injury, he said.

``Why it happens in certain patients and not in others is still a mystery,'' he said.

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