The 1996 death of an Ontario woman who received a chiropractic neck treatment was ruled by accident, a coroner's jury said Friday.

The lawyer for the family of Lana Dale Lewis told Canada AM that was the verdict they were hoping for.

"A finding of accident would be the jury concluding that it was a neck manipulation that caused the death," Amani Oakley explained.

Lewis, 45, died eight years ago, two weeks after visiting a Toronto chiropractor for an upper-neck adjustment as a remedy for migraine headaches.

Six days later, she suffered a minor stroke. That was followed by a larger stroke a week later, one which proved to be fatal.

After her fatal stroke, doctors discovered a tear in the artery at the back of the neck.

The coroner's jury was charged with determining whether the neck adjustment played a role in the death. 

They could have reached five possible findings -- homicide, accident, natural causes, undetermined and suicide.

The Canadian Chiropractic Association and the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College expressed disappointment with the jury's verdict, saying "it represents a massive miscarriage of justice."

Tim Danson, the chiropractors' lawyer, put it this way: "It's like saying two plus two equals 12 million. Only a grossly flawed process could produce such a stunning and perverse result."

The chiropractors argued the finding should have been "natural causes." They said Lewis, a heavy smoker and drinker, had been in poor health prior to her death and had been at risk of a stroke.

They are going to try and have the verdict erased by a judicial review, saying they weren't allowed to produce key evidence.

"This is one case, one incident ... and there are about 35 to 40 million cervical neck adjustments are done annually," said Stan Gorchinsky of the Canadian Chiropractic Association.

The coroner's probe began almost two years ago. The purpose of the inquest was not to assign blame, only to determine the cause of death.

The jury also unveiled 17 recommendations to prevent similar deaths in the future. They include:

• That the Ontario Ministry of Health fund a study on the relationship between high neck manipulation and stroke
• That patients provide "written and informed consent" to neck manipulations and
• That chiropractors keep written records of the exact procedure performed

While the ruling went the Lewis family's way, Wendy Abrams, Lewis's sister, said: "We did not win anything. What we have done is found justice and proven to the community at large that these chiropractic neck manipulations must not continue."

Some neurologists agree, saying they have found 10 deaths linked to neck adjustments, and will publish details in the spring.

"The numbers of deaths is astonishingly high," said Dr. Brad Stewart, one of those neurologists.

"We're having a fair amount of difficulty getting the families to release the info. Some instances, there have been settlements and not allowed to talk about it. In some cases they just don't want it brought up again."

Lewis' brother Mike Ford said the family has also launched a $12-million lawsuit against the chiropractor involved, Philip Emanuale, pending the jury's finding. But Ford said the real purpose of their efforts has been to raise awareness.

"The totality of our efforts have been to ensure that the truth comes out, that the common Canadian is aware of the fact that there are serious risks associated with having your neck manipulated," Ford told CTV.

The Canadian Chiropractic Association argues the practice of neck adjustments carries only minimal risks. But critics charge the practice can trigger strokes by tearing the lining of an artery supplying blood to the brain.

A study from the Canadian Stroke Consortium at Toronto's Sunnybrook Hospital, found chiropractic neck manipulation to be the leading cause of stroke due to damaged neck arteries in people under 45.

The Lewis case is only the second inquest in Canada to put chiropractic neck adjustments under the microscope.

In 1998, a coroner's inquest into the death of a 20-year-old Saskatchewan woman recommended that patients be informed about possible risks to their health before undergoing such treatment.