(NewsUSA) - More than 200,000.

That's the number of nonfatal occupational back injuries -- 217,666, to be precise -- that resulted in lost workdays in just one year, according to the most recent annual data compiled by the U.S. Bureau of Labor and Statistics. That's more than the number of work-related head, neck, arm and foot injuries combined.

This has a huge impact on our economy: The World Health Organization has estimated that low back pain alone costs the U.S. between $100 billion and $200 billion annually. 

Here's some of the jobs that were most prone to back injuries: 

* Laborers and freight, stock and materials movers.

* Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers.

* Nursing assistants.

* Production workers.

Until recently, surgeons could count on a booming business of patient referrals. But these days, given the increasing interest in drug-free, non-invasive alternatives and the reality of the outcomes of surgical care, chiropractic care has become a go-to approach.

"Very few conditions present situations where it is appropriate to proceed directly to the operating room," Natalie Drake of the Texas Institute of Spine and Neurosurgery recently stated. "In many cases, less-invasive options will provide the desired relief."  

Cost has also played a factor in chiropractic's rise. As noted in a recent study in the Journal of Manipulative & Physiological Therapeutics, "paid costs for episodes of care initiated with a D.C. [doctor of chiropractic] were almost 40 percent less than episodes initiated with an M.D. [medical doctor]."  

Indeed, as Gerard Clum, D.C., of the not-for-profit Foundation for Chiropractic Progress says, "We're noticing that patients who use chiropractic care as a first choice have better outcomes and incur fewer costs."  

To locate a doctor of chiropractic in your area, visit www.F4CP.org/findadoctor.