Chiropractic - Dallas/Ft. Worth

Chiropractic Cure-all?

Chiropractic is often mistakenly called a cure-all for any and all diseases. This is simply not true. Surprisingly, however, a recent medial study showed at 400% increase in the resistance to sickness for those under regular chiropractic care. However, chiropractic care does not make the body better by adding some mystical power. Instead, the chiropractic adjustment removes blockages or interferences in your spine which prevent your body from staying well in the first place. The better health and freedom from symptoms you desire are in you already -- right now. Chiropractic removes the “block in the road” on your way to better health.

What is Chiropractic?

What is Chiropractic? Chiropractic is a health system dealing with wellness, prevention, the treatment of ongoing conditions, and the correction of chronic conditions. It is a method of diagnosis that deals with the relationship of the spinal cord to the muscles, bones, joints, discs, and nerves.  Chiropractic restores the body to normal function.
80% the population has spinal problems at some time in their lives. 30% of the population gets back pain every day. Most chiropractors concentrate on mechanical problems of the spine, such as back aches, disc pains and whiplash. Other disorders including those of the organs and glands, also respond to chiropractic adjustments. Some chiropractors also deal with the other caused of disease which include physical, chemical, or mental interference. 
Chiropractors correct a condition know as VERTEBRAL SUBLUXATION COMPLEX (VSC) or Subluxation (for short) in which the joints may be fixed or displaced beyond their normal ranges of movement. This produces various changes, not only in that site but also in the lymph and nerves tissues.  The nerves control all of the muscles, bones, joints, and skin throughout the entire body which can lead to problems anywhere in the body.  These same nerves also control all of the organs, so if there is interference in the nervous system organic problems can occur.   Poor posture may also be responsible for the symptoms.
Structural defects can be corrected by ADJUSTING the spine resulting in the removal of interference caused by vertebral subluxation complex, thus allowing the patient to heal and to feel better. These techniques used by chiropractors concentrate on adjusting the vertebrae themselves.
Chiropractic is based theories and principles.

• The body is designed to be and stay healthy.
• Disturbances of the nervous system cause disease.  Subluxation is an interference of normal healthy communication between the brain and body.
• When we remove interferences by adjusting the Subluxation, this allows the body to return to normal health and operation.

Although a number of factors impair health, disturbances of the nervous system, which coordinates cellular activity, are among the most important. Disturbances of the nervous system may be caused by off-centering the main muscular, skeletal structure as a result of humans trying to maintain an erect posture. Disturbances, strains and stresses occur within the system. Disturbances of the nervous system cause or aggravate disease in various parts or functions in the body.
A disorder in a specific organ or tissue will have an effect on other functions, organs and tissues. Chiropractors believe that it is not the disease that makes you sick, but you become sick or even get a disease because your body loses its ability to adapt. Disease is a result of nervous system interference.
In summary, chiropractic is a branch of the healing arts and a science, which is based on the premise that good health depends on a normally functioning nervous system.

Adjustments

The adjustment is a safe, natural, noninvasive procedure used by the chiropractor to restore and improve health. Learning the art of adjusting is a skill that requires years of study and practice. Chiropractic doctors are the only health care professionals trained to deliver the chiropractic adjustment. Spinal adjustments by any other individual or health care professional have been shown to be dangerous and less effective.

What Is A Spinal Adjustment?

In basic terms, the spinal adjustment refers to the process in which the doctor of chiropractic skillfully applies controlled force into one or more "subluxated" vertebrae of the spine. The adjustment is also frequently used in the pelvic region to normalize the sacroiliac joints. The adjustment is usually delivered using the hands or through the use of a specialized mechanical tool.

When Should Spinal Adjustments Be Given?

Spinal adjustments are applied to certain vertebrae of the spine which are no longer in their proper position or where functioning has become impaired. Vertebrae which lose their normal position or proper motion are commonly termed vertebral Subluxations. The chiropractor uses a number of unique tests and procedures to determine which, if any, vertebrae are subluxated. If Subluxations are found, immediate correction is generally indicated. Since like cavities Subluxations are not always painful during the initial stages, even those who are not experiencing back or neck discomfort should receive periodic spinal checkups.

What Do Spinal Adjustments Do?

Adjusting helps correct vertebral Subluxations. Correcting Subluxations reduces pain and inflammation, reduces muscle spasm and tension, normalizes spinal biomechanics and more importantly, can remove nerve irritation and interference which can improve overall health and wellness of the individual. Chiropractic adjustments are the only way to eliminate vertebral Subluxations and only the chiropractor is trained to detect Subluxations and deliver the chiropractic spinal adjustment to correct Subluxations.

The Non-Spinal Adjustment

In addition to adjusting the spine and pelvis, almost every other joint of the body can be adjusted by the chiropractor. This includes the joints of the hands and feet, wrists and ankles, elbows and knees, shoulders and hips, ribs and the jaw. In fact, some chiropractors are even trained in techniques to adjust the joints (sutures) of the skull.
Like the joints of the spine, joints in the extremities can also become misaligned and fixated. Chiropractic adjustive techniques can restore and enhance extremity joint functioning which can increase the life of the joint and keep wear and tear to a minimum. This is of special interest to athletes who generally demand optimal joint performance from highly stressed joints. Adjusting provides an immediate increase in joint range of motion and also supplies the joint with nutrients, as motion is the only way to bring nutrients into the joint cartilage and flush wastes products out.

FYI

Did your mother ever warn you that "cracking" your knuckles would give you arthritis? If she did, we're sorry to say that she was wrong! Research has actually shown that individuals who habitually "crack" their knuckles over their lifetime actually lower the incidence of arthritis in their knuckles compared with those who do not. Researchers believe the knuckle "cracking" increases joint nutrition and maintains joint motion, both of which are essential for a healthy joint.

PRIMARY THERAPY

The chiropractic spinal adjustment represents the cornerstone of the chiropractic treatment. Spinal adjustments are used successfully to treat a variety of different soft tissue disorders as well as a number of other health problems. Chiropractic doctors are the only health care professionals trained to deliver the chiropractic spinal adjustment.
Spinal adjustments are the process of applying a quick but gentle pressure to "subluxated" vertebrae in a corrective manner. The adjustments are not and should not be painful. In fact, most patients look forward to their chiropractic adjustments as they usually provide immediate relief from discomfort and increase one's sense of well being. Many years of study and practice are necessary to acquire the skills of providing an effective and safe spinal adjustment.
Research has shown spinal adjustments to be the most effective treatment in numerous conditions including back pain. This is because spinal adjustments correct many of the structural, biomechanical and neurological abnormalities of the spine which cause or contribute to a high number of back, neck and other non-spinal ailments.

ADJUNCTIVE THERAPIES

Non- Surgical Spinal Decompression
Decompression relieves pressure that builds up on the discs and nerves. The task of relieving pain comes about as a result of drawing areas of herniated disc back into place.

Decompression achieves this by creating negative pressure within the disc, referred to as negative intra-discal pressure. This creates essentially a vacuum to draw the bulging and herniated disc material back into the disc space and relieves pressure. As the ligaments that hold disc material in place become stretched or torn due to bulging and herniation, decompression strengthens the ligament bands that hold the disc material in place to heal & prevent future recurrence.

In most cases the healing process requires only a few weeks of treatment on an out-patient basis. We have committed to undergo expert training in the delivery of decompression and dedicate a large portion of our practice to the relief of severe and chronic low back pain. Patients come to us to return to a normal pain free life

Soft Tissue Therapy

There are a number of soft tissue therapy techniques which can be successfully employed to assist in the reduction of pain and muscle hyper-tonicity and spasm. Some of these include, trigger point therapy, somatic therapy, proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation, acupressure point therapy, and Cold laser. The need and benefits of these therapies vary from patient to patient. Depending on your condition and response to treatment we may incorporate one or more of these therapies into your treatment plan.

Therapeutic Exercise

Exercise is essential for a long, healthy and vibrant life. It has been scientifically shown to increase health by lowering blood cholesterol levels, strengthening the immune system, lowering body fat, increasing one's sense of well being, and increasing muscle strength, tone and function.
Chiropractors understand the importance of exercise and the essential role it plays in health. We encourage all patients to participate in physical activities which promote cardiovascular health and can assist you finding the right activity. We do recommend those over the age of 40 or those with known health problems to consult our office prior to initiating any exercise regimen.

Healthy Disc

The discs of the spine receive nourishment through blood vessels until approximately the age of 20. At this point, the disc has been filled with a lifetime supply of nourishment. However, the disc has to make that supply of nourishment last a lifetime. Through aging and with normal wear and tear, we use the nourishment and all experience a slow degeneration of the discs of the spine.  This is normal aging. The more “stress” you put on the disc, the more you use up the nourishment, weakening and deteriorating the disc, creating a problem. One of the amazing benefits of decompression is that it heightens the disc space, and is seen to return it to normal size and function.
Bulging Disc

The jelly-like substance is prone to injury and the most common situation causing problems is one that puts pressure on the disc. The pressure causes the jelly material inside the disc to “bulge” or “slip” out of place. As this occurs, the bulge itself puts pressure on other structures near the disc like the nerves. That’s how bulging discs cause pressure to build up on the nerve.
Herniated Disc

Herniated discs (also often referred to as ruptured discs), often create confusion between bulging discs. A disc can bulge without herniating. When the jelly- like nucleus pulposis is under pressure, it can bulge. But, when the pressure is excessive, it can herniate (rupture) through the outer band called the annulus fibrosis. As the "herniated" disc material spills out, a portion can press on a nerve, causing pain and accompanying radiation and weakness of the muscles involved. The nerve can get "pinched" resulting in the condition of sciatica, radiating pain to the buttocks and/or lower extremity (leg and calf).  Over 90% of herniated discs occur in the lowest two levels of the lumbar spine, between L4/L5 and L5/S1

Common Chiropractic Problems

Lower Back Pain
Did you know that low back pain and low back pain injuries are the number one health related cause of missed work? It's true, and millions suffer daily, sometimes for years with chronic, debilitating back pain. Several important medical studies of low back pain treatments show once again that chiropractic care was far more effective for the relief and elimination of back pain. Furthermore, patients who receive chiropractic care can go back to work in half the time and at less than half the cost. Chiropractic care has been proven safer than surgery, and does not require continued use of pain pills and muscle relaxers.
Low back pain is often related to the mechanical structures of the spine. Low back pain often involves overexertion, muscle strain/sprain, ligament & tendon strain/sprain, arthritis, accident or injury, osteoporosis, or ligament & tendon strain/sprain.

Ear Infections
In today's world of high tech health care, so many have lost sight of simple, gentle and logical methods of treatment. Antibiotics, such as amoxicillin and others are currently the treatment of choice in ear infections in children. The temporary relief these drugs provide often promote more infections and severe infections later. Chiropractic is now being sighted as the new treatment for choice of childhood ear infections. While chiropractic, because it works, this gentle childhood treatment uses the same amount of pressure it takes to depress a turn signal in your car. By delicately balancing the child's spine, the nerves in the body's own immune system take over to fight off these and many other types of infections. Ask a friend who has tried this safe and natural alternative to drugs.

Neck Pain
New clinical findings indicate that neck pain which used to be called stress-related is in fact, irritated nerves near the pain which result in a condition known as neuralgia. Chiropractic studies in the cause of this condition reveal that in most cases, the nerve irritation can be relieved and the pain eliminated.

Headache
Migraine headaches are a debilitating, severe condition of head pain, nausea, vomiting and visual abnormalities. Most migraines only respond to drugs which simply render the user exhausted or unconscious. New clinical trials using chiropractic care as the primary source of treatment, show that migraines are relieved and eliminated more effectively than with drug use. The reason for this high statistical success rate is that chiropractic care treats the cause of the migraine, not only the symptom. Chiropractic more and more is being recognized as the scientific leader in the permanent elimination of migraine headaches.

In a tension headache, the muscle in the neck and head contract putting pressure on the nerves and blood vessels. The pain will continue until the muscles relax. Chiropractors believe that headaches are caused by misaligned vertebrae that gets in the way of the blood supply that goes to the head and brain, or causes a spasm in the neck muscle due to poor posture.
Organic disease, muscle strain, poor posture, sleeping in a cramped position, osteoporosis, arthritis, emotional trauma or slipped disc. Chiropractors have seen a lot of patients with back trouble because they have spent many years studying the spine. They are specialists in their area. They concentrate on restoring the structural, functional integrity of the spine. Joint pains go by many names – bursitis, tennis elbow, game arm. Few of the body's joints have escaped from label. The most common is bursitis. It's an acute inflammation of the bursa, a small fat that cushions tissues in a joint. The chiropractor might not only attend to the joint affected, but also go to the corresponding area of the spine.

Fibromyalgia
Fibromyalgia is a form of generalized muscular pain and fatigue that affects almost 5 million Americans.  It is estimated that as many as 10-15 Million more individuals go undiagnosed.  The Term fibromyalgia means pain in the muscles and connective tissue surrounding the muscles, ligaments, and tendons.  Many medical doctors insist that a patient must have a certain number (11 out of 18) of positive trigger points (painful areas) in order to be diagnosed with fibromyalgia.  Presently, there are some of medical doctors who feel that there is no need to find any positive trigger points in order to diagnose a patient with fibromyalgia.  My feeling is “who cares?” Fibromyalgia is a name, a label so to speak.  “Here you go Mrs. Jones, let’s put you in this neat little fibromyalgia box so we can treat you with medication, exercise, and stretching.”  Fibromyalgia to me means, “I have pain all over and I’m really tired.”  Fibromyalgia cannot be revealed be an abnormal lab finding; the diagnosis instead depends on a person’s report, complaints, and feelings.  Pain is the most prominent symptom of fibromyalgia, and it generally occurs through the entire body, although it may start in one region, such as the neck and shoulders, and spread to other areas over a period of time.

Dizziness or Vertigo
According to the Vestibular Disorders Association, vertigo and dizziness affect millions of people around the world each year.  More than 90 million adult Americans have experienced a dizziness or balance problem, and 40 % of the population over age 40 will suffer from a dizziness disorder in their lifetime.  Balance disorder is one of the two most common diagnoses among short term hospital admissions in individuals over the age of 65.  Balance-related falls account for more than half the accidental deaths and 75% of emergency room visits of the elderly population.  The cost of medical care for patients with balance disorders exceeds $1 billion yearly in the U.S. alone.  More than 5 million Americans visited their doctors in 1995 because of vertigo.

Many medical diagnoses of vertigo include an “inner ear problem”, which leads to a diagnosis of Benign Paroxysmal Positional Vertigo (BPPV).  Frankly, this is correct, but the balance is also related to other neuro-anatomical areas which include the brain, (frontal lobe, basal ganglia, and cerebellum), spinal cord, visual system, and proprioceptors. 

Independent Studies

For the past century, doctors of chiropractic have offered patients relief from numerous types of health problems, the source of which originated in the back and spine. Chiropractic procedure has often been successful when medical treatment has failed. This has been confirmed by an unlimited number of anecdotal and clinical experiences. In recent years, numerous scientific studies have been conducted throughout the world to determine and record specifically the effectiveness of chiropractic care -- among them, research by non-chiropractic professionals to provide more objectivity.

Chiropractic is Safer

The Manga Report, commissioned by the Ministry of Health in Ontario, Canada and carried out by leading, independent health economists, at the University of Ottawa and headed by Fran Manga, PhD, reviewed all of the international evidence on the management of low back pain. It concluded: There would be highly significant cost savings if more management of low back pain was transferred from physicians to chiropractors. There should be a "shift in policy to encourage and prefer chiropractic services for most patients with low back pain", and chiropractic should "be fully insured (and) fully integrated" into the Ontario health care system. The overwhelming body of evidence shows that chiropractic management of low back pain is more cost effective than medical management, and many medical therapies are of questionable validity or are clearly inadequate. It also stated that chiropractic manipulation is safer than medical management of low back pain. Chiropractic management is greatly superior to medical management in terms of scientific validity, safety, cost-effectiveness and patient satisfaction.

Chiropractic is Less Costly

Miron Stando, PhD, Oakland University, conducted a study comparing the health care costs for chiropractic and medical patients. The database he used came from the records of MEDSTAT Systems, Inc., a health benefits management consulting firm which processes insurance claims for many of the country's largest corporations. The database was comprised of 395,641 patients -- 42,215 of which were Michigan patients. After reviewing claims paid over a two-year period, he concluded: Patients who receive chiropractic care, either solely or in conjunction with medical care, experienced significantly lower health care costs ----- on the order of $1,000 each over the two-year period, than those who received only medical care. Specifically, total insurance payments were $1,138 (30%) higher for those who elected medical care only. The lower costs for chiropractic patients were attributed both to lower inpatient and outpatient costs, and indicated that chiropractic treatment substitutes for other forms of outpatient care.

History

In 1859, Daniel David Palmer delivered the first chiropractic adjustment to Harvey Lillard, a janitor in his office. Harvey had been deaf since his childhood when he hurt his back. Harvey had a full recovery including the restoration of his hearing after only that one adjustment to the spine. Although, this may seem like an extreme example, it clearly illustrates the potential that chiropractic has in healing. On the surface it may seem that chiropractic is limited to helping the spine, muscles and joints, this however is not the full reality. It must be remembered that the spine's function is to provide protection to the spinal cord (a direct extension of the brain), while allowing for extremely versatile bending and ranges of motion of the trunk. It is really quite remarkable to think of the ability that this extension of the brain (the spine and spinal cord) has during bodily motion. If you've ever seen a professional gymnast perform, you can see that the degree of flexibility of the vertebra and spinal cord can be extensive.

The Brain

When people think of the brain, they picture only part of the brain. That is, they only picture the part that is contained within the skull. It is more accurate to picture the brain as the part in the skull, with a tail. Any structure in the brain is complex, delicate and responsible for running and maintaining all the systems and functions of the body. This includes the "tail" part, which is called the spinal cord.

Although one may think of the spinal cord as the wires that enables the brain to communicate with all parts of the body, this is only the partial picture. The spinal cord has certain functions within itself that do not relay to the brain, and so it has features of the brain itself. Reflexes are an example of a function that occurs entirely in the spinal cord and does not involve the brain itself. While the brain is encased in a housing of solid bone, the skull; the spinal "casing" needs to allow for a great deal of motion. Nature's answer to this challenge is the 24 movable bones called the vertebrae. The vertebrae afford protection to the delicate spinal cord, while allowing for a full range of motion of the trunk of the body.

Balance and Subluxation

Whenever there is a system containing many moveable parts a complex balance is necessary between those parts. In the spine, this is further complicated by the fact that between each vertebrae are not just one, but several joints. In order to maintain that balance, each one of these joints must be moving entirely and properly. If even one of the joints is not moving properly, it disturbs the balance to some degree. When a vertebral joint is not moving properly and this imbalance disturbs the nervous system, this is called a SUBLUXATION. This can result in other joints having to move excessively to pick up the slack, and usually results in some form of pain.

Control
As already was discussed, the spinal cord helps to control the whole body. This includes your ability to use your muscles, move, and use your sense of touch. It also includes the body's ability to maintain itself; keep you breathing properly, keep the heart beating properly, control the flow of blood through the blood vessels, control proper digestion and control the body's immune system. You are now beginning to see the utmost importance of good spinal health.

Pain
Although pain is often a result of disturbed spinal balance, it is usually the last thing to come and the first thing to go with the onset of subluxation. When a person is finally in pain they make the mistake of thinking that they are now sick or that something is now wrong that was not before. This is not accurate. As was stated, pain is the last thing to come. When the body finally gets to the point that it is in pain, it is now to the point where the problem is so bad that it can no longer be ignored. Pain is the body's reaction that says, "I can no longer function in this way, I am in trouble now, HELP!" Also, pain usually disables a person from moving in certain ways. This is the body saying, "until the subluxation is corrected and the balance is restored, it is harmful to move in this way. Here is a stimulus (pain) that will make sure that you don't move in this way." So pain actually has an important function in the body's ability to maintain and heal itself. Pain often makes sure that you don't make the problem worse.

Maintenance
It is not necessary to get to the point where your body is in pain. If the spinal balance is restored and then maintained, pain can be avoided all together. A chiropractor is trained to correct Subluxations of the spine through a process known as the chiropractic ADJUSTMENT. Often after an adjustment, immediate relief can be experienced.
If the underlying imbalance has been there for quite some time, it can sometimes take longer. The question arises, "Why, once I'm adjusted do I have to keep getting adjusted?" To answer this, here is an analogy: When a person's teeth are crooked they get braces. After the teeth have straightened out, the orthodontist puts in a retainer. The reason that the retainer is used when the teeth are already straight is because the canals that surround the teeth are still crooked. It takes time for these retaining elements (the tooth canals) to straighten out. The spine also has retaining elements. In the spine however, these are not canals but are muscles, ligaments and tendons. When proper mobility and balance is restored to the vertebrae, it must now be retained so that the muscles, ligaments and tendons can compensate themselves back to normal. Because of incorrect posture and uneven muscle use, these retaining elements are usually also out of balance and may take longer than the vertebral joints to return to normalcy.

Often after spinal balance has been maintained for long enough, a Doctor of Chiropractic will give certain exercises to help to maintain the balance of the retaining elements. It makes good sense to keep the spine maintained instead of allowing it to degenerate to the point of being painful. It's even more fun to get adjusted when you are not in pain.

Chiropractors
Chiropractors are the only ones that are specifically trained to restore spinal balance. Chiropractors correct Subluxations. No other doctor or profession makes this claim. Chiropractors are extensively trained to accomplish these ends. It is important to note the emphasis of chiropractic. That is, that the body heals itself, it's never the Band-Aid that heals the cut, and it’s never the pill that cures the cold.

What is Chiropractic?
Chiropractic - which means treatment by hand, is the third largest primary health care profession. It does not use drugs or surgery. Chiropractic looks at the relationship between the structure of the spine and the function of the nervous system. Your brain controls all cells, tissues and organs in the body. It acts like an electrical generator producing nervous impulses which feed and control bodily function. If your brain stops functioning, then you're legally dead. When the nerves of the body, which carry information to and from the brain, are interfered with, what ever the nerve feeds will have impaired function. Vertebra can misalign and interfere with nervous impulses and this is what chiropractors call a subluxation. Chiropractors work to correct the cause of disease rather than the symptoms which are the result of the disease. Treating symptoms never works -- that's like having a car that is out of alignment and replacing the tires continually instead of fixing the alignment. Chiropractic uses special techniques to adjust the spine to help restore its normal structure and function, and to relieve the spinal irritation.

What are the Essentials of Health?
To understand the essentials of health, we need to understand the essentials of life. In terms of basic physiological essentials for survival, we can name eight: food, water, oxygen, exercise, rest, sunlight, positive thoughts and nerve impulse. What makes these essential is that if any of them were to stop, you would die. If any of them were interfered with, your health would not be at its optimum potential.

Most people overlook nerve impulse as being essential to life. Nerve impulse is an electro-chemical charge transmitted by the brain through the nervous system to the body. All body function is dependent on this impulse. If you brain stopped generating these impulses, you would die. If fact, to be legally dead, brain impulse must stop. What would happen if you severed the nerve to your heart, lung, stomach or any other organ or tissue? What would happen to it? What if you just interfere with the normal nerve transmission? Would these organs and tissues function at their optimum potential?

One of the major causes for such nerve interference is a misalignment of the spine, commonly termed by chiropractors as a subluxation. Subluxation can interfere with nerve pathways and result in abnormal function and lowered health potential. Chiropractor’s primary role is to locate and correct subluxation, thus removing nerve interference and allowing the body to restore its normal function. It is not a treatment for symptoms or a cure for disease, but merely a way of improving the body's optimum health potential, through proper nerve integrity. When the body is functioning optimally though, symptoms usually go away and the person feels better.

What are Spinal Subluxation Chiropractors work on? Primarily one thing - the vertebral subluxation is a vertebra that is out of alignment with the vertebrae above and below resulting in nerve pressure and interference of the mental impulse from the brain to the tissue cell. This interference of mental impulse causes a breakdown of the normal tissue cells until enough abnormal tissue cells have been formed to cause disease.

The chiropractor's job is to remove the subluxation allowing the mental impulse to get to the tissue cells, the body has a greater potential to heal and stay healthy. Any physical, chemical or emotional stress, which is greater than the body's internal resistance, will cause subluxation.

Physical stress can range from whiplash trauma to sitting at your desk day after day with your head turned to the same side.
Chemical stress is everything from eating too much sugar and preservatives to breathing environmental pollutants.
Mental stress is something everyone has experienced in either tense or emotional situations, or in everyday living.
Health Conditions Treated Chiropractors have been known solely for treating back pain because of their success of this particular condition. But, chiropractors' potential for health care goes far beyond that. Chiropractic works with many conditions and symptoms including whiplash, leg pain, headaches, shoulder and arm pain, back pain and a whole host of other conditions that you may have never realized. Even though many people find relief of their pain, and increased health potential through chiropractic, chiropractic deals with the treatment of the cause of disease rather than the symptoms themselves.

A symptom only results from abnormal, weak or damage tissue cells. A symptom is a warning signal sent to the brain from the tissue cell level to alert the brain that there has been damage. The most common symptom is pain, however, symptoms such as burning, tingling and numbness can occur. Symptom threshold is different for everyone. It makes more sense to treat the cause of disease than it is to cover up the effect.

Facts About Chiropractic

• The chiropractic profession was established in 1895.
• * All fifty states have statues recognizing and regulating the practice of chiropractic as an independent health service.
• * Chiropractic benefits are provided for in health insurance policies of virtually every major insurance carrier and state workers compensation.
• * The doctor of chiropractic training requires over eight years of college, with four years of that spent in college of chiropractic. Areas of study include anatomy, pathology, physiology, biochemistry, x-ray, nutrition, spinal adjusting, and many other related subjects.
• * Chiropractic is a non-drug, and non-surgical health profession that maintains a high standard of professional ethics. *
•  The first chiropractic patient didn't have back pain, but had hearing loss which was restored thus leading to the discovery of chiropractic by a man named D. D. Palmer in 1895. *
•  Chiropractic is safe and works with the body's own healing potential to restore health and relieve symptoms.

FAQ

What's Wrong With Me?

Accurately identifying the cause of spinal pain or other discomfort almost always requires a thorough consultation and examination. Individuals should not assume their pain stems from the same problem, for example, their neighbor had, and thus what has helped their neighbor will help them. Just as every individual is unique and different from the next, so too are the health conditions they suffer and the treatments they require.

Chiropractic doctors are highly trained in the diagnosis and treatment of soft tissue injuries and abnormalities common to the spine, extremities and rest of body. Rest assured that if you are suffering from back or neck problems, extremity problems or other health related ailments chiropractic can provide you with the effective professional relief you demand. If your condition is out of the chiropractic scope or would be more appropriately managed by another health care specialist, we will gladly and promptly make the necessary referral.

Can Chiropractic Help Me?

Chiropractic has helped millions of people worldwide suffering from all types of problems and not just back and neck ailments. Chiropractic works with the spinal column and it's intimate relationship with the nervous system - the major controller of all bodily functions. By optimizing spinal column structure and biomechanics, irritation and stress are removed and health can once again be achieved.

You may be surprised to learn that research studies have provided scientific evidence showing chiropractic care is not only effective in the treatment of back and neck ailments, but can also provide effective relief with children suffering from ear infections, women suffering from dysmenorrhea (painful menses), and a number of other seemingly "non-spinal" conditions. While it's not prudent to guarantee relief from such conditions or claim to "treat" these conditions, chiropractic has successfully helped millions of individuals with all sorts of health conditions by positively affecting the nervous system.

Of course, doctors of chiropractic are best known for their success in treating back and neck problems. Through the use of chiropractic spinal adjustments and other highly specialized chiropractic techniques, chiropractors have established themselves as the back and neck injury specialists. Many medical experts are now coming to understand the true effectiveness of chiropractic care and are recommending major changes in the way our health care system manages many common spinal problems. According to a recent Ontario Ministry of Health commissioned study on low-back pain,

"A very good case can be made for making chiropractors the gatekeepers for management of low-back pain..."

How Long Will It Take?

While treatment lengths vary somewhat from person to person and from condition to condition, there are a few rules of thumb you can follow.
First, newer injuries, if treated appropriately and immediately, tend to respond to fewer visits assuming that major tissue injury has not occurred. Many of these first time injuries can be effectively managed in as little as 3 to 4 visits. Conditions that have been present for greater than 3 months and recurring conditions are generally more stubborn and difficult to manage. Resolution may require 12 visits or more.

The only sure way to determine how long your treatment will take is to schedule a consultation and/or examination.
For those of you who believe in just waiting for the problem to "go away" on its own - understand that the longer your condition has been around, the more treatments it will eventually require to resolve.

How Much Will It Cost?

Costs vary and generally depend on the number of treatments required to effectively treat your condition. A number of studies have shown that chiropractic care is extremely cost effective when compared to other "medical" forms of care for similar conditions. According to the 1993 Manga Report,
"There would be highly significant cost savings if more management of low-back pain was transferred from physicians to chiropractors. Users of chiropractic care have substantially lower health care costs, especially inpatient costs, than those who use medical care only."

Do I Have To Keep Coming Back For Treatments?
You may have heard the notion that once you go to a chiropractor you have to keep going back. Before we answer that question, ask yourself how many times you have visited a dentist? Like most people, you've probably gone dozens of times. Why? Quite simply, to prevent your teeth from literally rotting out of your head.
Once we have eliminated your pain and rehabilitated the injured tissues we do recommend that you maintain a schedule of periodic spinal checkups. Like your dentist and like many of the medical experts are now recognizing, prevention is the key to reducing recurrences of existing health conditions and minimizing new injuries in the future.
So the answer is yes, we want you to keep coming back, but just periodically. Periodic chiropractic care minimizes spinal and nerve stresses, reduces recurrences of old injuries, prevents new injuries from developing, and minimizes degenerative processes, which enhances overall health and wellness.


Are Chiropractic Treatments Safe and Do They Hurt?
Chiropractic treatments are extremely safe for individuals of all ages - from infants to 100 year olds. Our treatments are safe because we only use natural and noninvasive methods of care. Research consistently shows that care from chiropractors is among the safest care available and is literally light years ahead of traditional medical care in terms of "safeness".
The treatments themselves are generally not painful. In fact, most patients look forward to their treatments as many experience instantaneous relief immediately afterwards. Individuals who present with moderate to severe pain may experience some minor discomfort for obvious reasons; however, care is always gentle, safe and noninvasive

Chiropractic Myths

Over the years a number of myths pertaining to chiropractic have been created, mostly by economic competitors and those with differing philosophies. While the majority of myths have no basis, they do exist and cause some confusion to individuals unfamiliar with chiropractic care.

Chiropractic Myth:

Spinal Adjustments Hurt

Quite the contrary. Many patients feel instant relief immediately after their treatments. In fact, most look forward to their chiropractic treatments. In patients suffering from severe bouts of back or neck pain, some discomfort may be experienced for obvious reasons, however, for most patients this is not the case.

Chiropractic Myth:

Spinal Adjustments Are Dangerous

Chiropractic spinal adjustments are extremely safe when performed by chiropractors. In fact, chiropractic adjustments are among the safest treatments for most back and neck problems. According to a 1993 Ontario Ministry of Health commissioned study,
"There is no clinical or case-control study that demonstrates or even implies that chiropractic spinal manipulation is unsafe in the treatment of low-back pain. Some medical treatments are equally safe, but others are unsafe and generate iatrogenic (doctor-induced) complications for low-back pain patients. Our reading of the literature suggests that chiropractic manipulation is safer than medical management of low-back pain."

Lead investigator of the study, Pran Manga, Ph.D., however, did warn that spinal adjustments performed by health care professionals other than qualified doctors of chiropractic were potentially harmful and less effective:
"Indeed, several existing medical therapies of low-back pain are generally contraindicated on the basis of the existing clinical trials. There is also some evidence in the literature to suggest that spinal manipulations are less safe and less effective when performed by non-chiropractic professionals."
On December 8, 1994, the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR) of the US Department of Health and Human Services released clinical practice guidelines for the management of acute low back pain. Their guidelines were developed after extensive study of the diagnostic and treatment methods used for acute low back pain. Their findings included:

• The risk of serious complications from lumbar spinal manipulation is rare;
• Conservative treatment such as spinal manipulation should be pursued in most cases before considering surgical intervention;
• Prescription drugs such as oral steroids, antidepressant medications and colchicines are not recommended for acute low back problems.

Chiropractic Myth:

Chiropractic Doctors Lack Education Compared With Medical Doctors

The training and education endured by chiropractors is extremely thorough and demanding, similar to that of medical doctors with the exception of pharmacology and surgery.
Prior to entering chiropractic college, the aspiring chiropractor requires 2-4 years (depending on the college attended and the state one wishes to practice in) of premed undergraduate studies. Once completed, the student must next complete 4-5 academic years of studies at a chiropractic college. This includes extensive training in anatomy, physiology, pathology, neurology, radiology, differential diagnosis, chiropractic adjustive techniques, biomechanics, and other health-related studies.
In addition, prior to graduation each student must successfully complete several hundred clinical hours of "real" patient management in a clinical setting under professional supervision. Most chiropractic colleges also require students to partake in clinical externship programs which place them in actual chiropractic offices, further enhancing their clinical practice skills.
Near or soon after graduation, the new doctors of chiropractic must successfully complete rigorous National and State Board examinations prior to obtaining a license to practice chiropractic. Once licensed, most states require that chiropractors receive annual continuing education to ensure that a high level of competency is maintained.

Chiropractic Myth:

Chiropractic Is Not Scientific

Chiropractors have always sought to provide the safest and most effective healing methods for their patients. In order to achieve this, the chiropractic profession has been dedicated to conducting scientific studies to improve their diagnostic methods and treatment techniques. In the last 20 years chiropractic health care has established an impressive array of scientific research that demonstrates the efficacy, safety and cost effectiveness of chiropractic care. There are many further studies currently underway, and several have been performed by medical doctors and government researchers in both the U.S. and a number of other countries.

In fact, the chiropractic profession has accumulated a greater number of scientific trials on chiropractic than the medical profession has accumulated for many of the treatments rendered by medical doctors. According to David M. Edy, M.D., Ph.D., professor of health policy and management with Duke University, North Carolina, only 15 percent of all medical interventions are supported by solid scientific evidence. Paul G. Shekelle, M.D., M.P.H., of the RAND Corporation made the following statement on ABC's 20/20:
"There are considerably more randomized controlled trials which show benefit of this (chiropractic care) than there are for many, many other things which physicians and neurosurgeons do all the time."

Chiropractic Myth:

Chiropractic Care Is Expensive

Research clearly disproves this myth. Chiropractic care has been consistently shown to be cost effective in a number of government and workers' compensation board studies.
According to The Manga Report, a 1993 Canadian government commissioned study,
"There would be highly significant cost savings if more management of low-back pain was transferred from physicians to chiropractors... Users of chiropractic care have substantially lower health care costs, especially inpatient costs, than those who use medical care only."
According to an economic analysis conducted in Richmond, Virginia,
"By every test of cost and effectiveness, the general weight of evidence shows chiropractic to provide important therapeutic benefits, at economical costs. Additionally, these benefits are achieved with apparently minimal, even negligible, impacts on the costs of health insurance."
When the State of Florida's Workers' Compensation Board conducted research in 1988 on treatment costs associated with injured workers who received care from either chiropractic doctors or medical doctors, they found chiropractic treatment costs were 58.8 percent of the treatments costs rendered by medical doctors ($558 vs. $1,100 per case).

Chiropractic Myth:

You'll Have To Continue Chiropractic Care For The Rest Of Your Life

Most doctors of chiropractic promote a preventative type of lifestyle which has been construed by adversaries to mean that chiropractic care requires a lifetime of commitment. Actually, recommending that patients return for periodic spinal care is no different that what dentists recommend to their patients in order to prevent cavities and gum disease.
Just as it would be ludicrous to believe that visiting a dentist once per lifetime would ensure permanently healthy teeth and gums it's equally as silly to think that visiting a chiropractor a few times will ensure a lifelong healthy spine. Our spinal tissues undergo daily bombardment of stresses originating from bad postural habits, suboptimal work environments, psychological stress, and hectic lifestyles just to name a few.

For these reasons, after the resolution of acute problems patients are given the option to receive periodic spinal checkups which acts to minimize the likelihood of future recurrences or development of new problems. The preventative approach in health care has been gaining much recognition as of late and there has been a large push in the medical community and health insurance industry to incorporate preventative programs into mainstream medicine.
It's really that simple. Periodic care to prevent future problems - safe, natural, convenient care now to avoid nasty and complex problems later.

Chiropractic Myth:

Chiropractors Only Treat Back Pain

Chiropractors provide effective treatment for all types of soft tissue disorders and not just back and neck ailments. This includes conditions of the joints of the extremities like the ankle, knee and shoulder.

What you may not be aware of is chiropractic's success in treating a number of non-soft tissue conditions like dysmenorrhea (painful menses), ulcers, migraine headaches, and ear infections in children. While we cannot claim to cure these conditions, we believe that many of these problems can be mimicked, aggravated and some times caused by disruptions in the nervous system as a result of spinal abnormalities. By correcting these spinal abnormalities like the vertebral subluxation, chiropractic has helped thousands of individuals overcome these conditions and regain control of their lives.

A number of studies have also supported these findings. In one such study, spinal manipulative therapy was compared with standard medical treatments in the treatment of duodenal ulcers. The researchers Pikalov, MD, and Kharin, MD, found those subjects receiving spinal manipulations took an average of 16 days to heal vs. 26 days to heal in the standard medical treatment group.

This educational content is for educational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, home improvement or health advice. Content on this page is provided by Ask The Experts and not the featured advertiser.

Back to the top