Question
AFTER 24 YEARS OF A MINOR, BUT CONSISTENT NECK & LOWER BACK STIFFNESS,  I FINALLY DECIDED TO SEEK CHIROPRACTIC HELP.
BY MY THIRD VISIT, I WAS EXPERIENCING EXTREME PAIN FROM A RIB THAT WAS NOW OUT OF PLACE.  NEVER IN MY LIFE HAS THAT EVER HAPPENED BEFORE.  IS IT JUST A FLUKE.  
MY CHIROPRACTOR SAID THAT TO CORRECT MY NEW PROBLEM, IT WOULD TAKE APPRX. 4 MORE VISITS.  AND ADDED THAT HER CARE HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH MY RIB NOW CAUSING SO MUCH PAIN.
SO, 4 VISITS LATER THE PROBLEM WAS CORRECTED SUPPOSEDLY. ONE WEEK LATER, THE SAME RIB FEELS LIKE ITS PUNCTURING MY LUNG AGAIN.    
8 VISITS, NO IMPROVEMENT TO MY NECK OR LOWER BACK, AND NEW PAIN ISSUES WITH MY RIBS.
IS IT JUST A FLUKE.  DID CHIROPRACTIC CARE MAKE MY BACK WORSE.  WHAT CAN I DO ABOUT MY NEW SLIPPED RIB PROBLEM.  
IN THE WAITING ROOM, I KEEP SEEING PEOPLE SO HAPPY ABOUT THIER RESULTS. URGGGG!!!!

Answer
Dave,

Doctors always seem to have difficulty admitting that they were the cause of someone's pain.  We are so used to having to be right about everything, even though we are not.  I don't know where along your ribs there is a problem, but I'll assume it is in the middle of your back somewhere.  I would ask your chiropractor if it truly is a rib, or is it referred pain from another structure, e.g. a disc in your neck (which can refer into the upper back along the border of the shoulder blade, giving you the perception that it is a rib).  Also ask if it is possible for joint manipulation to strain an area (the answer is yes...post treatment soreness is a very common side effect...and there have been lots of cases of rib fractures, but in osteoporotic women...not likely a man).    Dave, if all that's going on is that you suffered a strain to the spine/rib connection, then your chiropractor should be able to alleviate it.  It may be more related to the muscles and fascial connective tissue as much as it is a rib alteration, so she should spend some time massaging and working out the surrounding soft tissues.   If you experienced a sudden onset of this rib pain when she adjusted your spine, then odds are she did this (unintentionally).  If so, she has to understand that it is not going to affect her reputation or her business, and that it simply was an unforseen accident.   Otherwise, if you experienced the pain well after the joint manipulation, then possibly it has nothing to do with any of her procedures, as they may have been appropriate, but just your body's reaction to it.   Either way, find a way to get the problem resolved with the right mix of treatment.    Have a frank conversation with her and ask her to home in on what the problem is.   If you get a gut feeling that she is not going to address your problem with genuine concern, then get another DC to evaluate you.  

'Hope this helps.

Dr. G