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Back pain, particularly lower back pain, is one of the most common reasons people seek out Chiropractic treatment. Sometimes back pain can be a result of an injury, however, it is often caused by poor posture, incorrect lifting and bending, sitting for long periods, particularly at a computer and sleeping in the wrong position. Forward head posture is also often a cause of back pain. Back pain can be caused by one or more vertebrae that are out of alignment or have dysfunctional motion and may be creating pressure on or causing irritation to the nerves of the spine. Gentle, non-painful adjustments are used to assist in bringing the vertebrae back to their functional state.
The “Spinal Pain Model of Care” issued by the Western Australian Government Department of Health, deems spinal manipulation to be an effective treatment for the most common causes of low back pain. (pg 44)
As the largest existing analysis of scientific literature on low back pain, the Ontario Ministry of Health commissioned study drew international attention when it recommended the management of low back pain be moved from medical doctors to Chiropractic doctors.
In an effort to reduce and contain health care costs, the Canadian Government carried out a report on different types of treatments for low back conditions. Their findings showed Chiropractic manipulation was the most cost effective and efficacious care for low back pain.
The researchers also stated that studies on the prevalence and incidence of low back pain suggest that it is the leading cause of disability and morbidity in middle-aged persons, and is by far the most expensive source of workers’ compensation costs North America.
The Canadian Government report concluded with the following findings:
Read the Canadian Govt Manga report here.
Effectiveness of manual therapies: the UK evidence report; “Spinal manipulation/mobilization is effective in adults for: acute, subacute, and chronic low back pain; migraine and cervicogenic headache; cervicogenic dizziness; manipulation/mobilization is effective for several extremity joint conditions; and thoracic manipulation/mobilization is effective for acute/subacute neck pain.” (See here)
Neck pain is another common complaint that our Chiropractors regularly treat. Like back pain, neck pain is often caused by poor posture, incorrect lifting and bending, sitting for long periods, particularly at a computer and sleeping in the wrong position. Forward head posture is also often a cause of neck pain. Neck pain can be caused by one or more vertebrae being out of alignment or having dysfunctional motion and may be creating pressure on or causing irritation to the nerves. Gentle, non-painful adjustments are used to assist in bringing the vertebrae back to their correct functional state.
After ten years of research, known as the Bone and Joint Decade (2000-2010), the “Task force on neck pain and neck associated disorders” found, based on best evidence, that patients with Grade I or Grade II neck pain who receive spinal manipulation or mobilisation, benefit from relief of their symptoms, of which there has been shown to be no evidence of any excess risk of VBA stroke. (See here)
A literature review carried out by the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics looked at the benefits of manual therapy for patients with chronic mechanical neck pain. After reviewing nine previously published trials they found “high-quality evidence” that patients with chronic neck pain show “significant pain-level improvements following spinal manipulation.” (See here)
Effectiveness of manual therapies: the UK evidence report; “Spinal manipulation/mobilization is effective in adults for: acute, subacute, and chronic low back pain; migraine and cervicogenic headache; cervicogenic dizziness; manipulation/mobilization is effective for several extremity joint conditions; and thoracic manipulation/mobilization is effective for acute/subacute neck pain.” (See here)
A pinched nerve/nerve root pain can be an excruciating condition. Pinched nerves occur when too much pressure is applied to a nerve by surrounding tissues — such as bones, cartilage, muscles or tendons. Pinched nerve symptoms include numbness, tingling, burning, shooting pain, and weakness. Pinched nerve treatment may include spinal adjustments, soft tissue therapy, decompression therapy, such as traction, using our flexion/distraction table, exercise rehabilitation and appraisal of workplace ergonomics.
The “Spinal Pain Model of Care” issued by the Western Australian Government Department of Health, deems spinal manipulation to be an effective treatment for Nerve root pain. (pg 44)
When dealing with a slipped disc, Chiropractors must identify the severity of the disk injury. Once the Chiropractor has identified it is safe to adjust the patient with the disk injury, then the Chiropractor may use any of the techniques listed in the ‘Chiropractic Techniques’ section. It is up to the judgement of the Chiropractor to identify which treatments will provide the best results.
Researches in Canada studied the relative costs and benefits of Lumbar Microdiskectomy and Chiropractic manipulation for patients with low back pain and sciatica associated with lumbar Disc herniation where usual medical care had failed. The results were dramatic; 60% of patients with sciatica who had failed medical management benefited from spinal manipulation to the same degree as if they had undergone surgical intervention, at a far lower cost.
In the U.S., at least 200,000 microdiskectomies are performed annually at a cost of $5 BILLION, or $25,000 per procedure. Avoiding 60% of these surgeries would mean a savings reduction of $3 Billion annually. In the Canadian study, patients receiving Chiropractic care averaged 21 visits during their course of care.
If it cost $100 per patient visit, which is a generous estimate, then the total cost per patient would be $2,100, yielding per patient savings of $22,900 US Dollars or 2.75 Billion US dollars annually (See here)
“Subacute/chronic Cervical disc patients treated with Spinal Manipulative Therapy were significantly more likely to report relevant improvement compared with CNRI (cranial nerve root injection) patients.” (See here)
This study shows the outcomes of lumbar radiculopathy (compressed nerve pain) due to disc herniation. Data on 49 patients were collected and at the end of conservative, nonsurgical treatment that included Chiropractic; “Improvement was described as “good” or “excellent” in nearly 90% of patients. Clinically meaningful improvements in pain and disability were seen in 79% and 70% of patients, respectively. Mean number of visits was 13.2.” (See here)
Migraine is a common, burdensome, and disabling disorder that increases throughout childhood and early adult life until approximately the age of 40 years, after which it declines. According to The Headache Classification Committee of the International Headache Society (IHS), migraine is defined as headache on one side of the head, with a pulsating quality and moderate to severe intensity that is aggravated by routine physical activity. The patient must also experience nausea and/or vomiting, photophobia (aversion to light), and/or phonophobia (aversion to sound.)
Several studies have assessed Chiropractic spinal manipulative therapy (CSMT) as a therapy for migraine.6-14 The evidence includes 3 systematic reviews,7,15,16,17 2 randomized controlled trials,6,9 a controlled trial,10 and 3 case studies.8,11-13 These studies show CSMT to be effective in treating migraineurs.
A study of 127 migraine sufferers in Australia found that Chiropractic treatment resulted in fewer migraine attacks, with Chiropractic patients needing less medication. Researchers determined that Chiropractic care helped to reduce the body’s reaction to stress, which was often the cause of a persons’ migraine. (See here)
When comparing Chiropractic therapy to medical treatment, a randomised controlled trial of 150 tension-type headache found that spinal manipulative treatment for tension-type headaches by Chiropractors produced far few side-effects than standard medical treatment. While both treatments were effective, only the Chiropractic patients continued to report fewer headaches after treatment had ended. (See here)
Effectiveness of manual therapies: the UK evidence report; “Spinal manipulation/mobilisation is effective in adults for: acute, subacute, and chronic low back pain; migraine and cervicogenic headache; cervicogenic dizziness; manipulation/mobilisation is effective for several extremity joint conditions; and thoracic manipulation/mobilisation is effective for acute/subacute neck pain.” (See here)
Pregnancy/Birth Related Pain
Chiropractic care is often used in the care of pregnant women, particularly for low back pain. A survey of 1,531 women in South Australia found that 35.5% of women experienced moderately severe low back pain during pregnancy and that two-thirds of this group had persistent back pain following pregnancy. (See here)
A study of obstetric caregivers and pregnant women in New Haven, CT, found that 61.7% of the pregnant women and 36.6% of the obstetric caregivers would consider Chiropractic care for low back pain during pregnancy. (See here)
A study of 400 pregnancies and deliveries was undertaken by interview of 170 consecutive female patients presenting to 5 Chiropractic offices in the Niagara Peninsula in Canada. Back pain was reported during 42.5% of the pregnancies and 44.7% of the deliveries. Those that had received manual manipulation reported significantly less pain during labour. (See here)
A case series study found that Chiropractic care, averaging only 1.8 visits, led to clinically important improvement in 16 of 17 cases of low back pain in pregnancy with no adverse effects. (See here)
If you have Vertigo and Dizziness, we may be able to help you through Chiropractic treatment. Chiropractic adjustments target joints that are not moving properly, and these unhealthy movements may result in misinformation about body position and movement going from your joints to the brain. Chiropractic adjustments help to improve the quality and accuracy of the communication between the body and the brain.
When the spine resumes its healthy and ideal alignment and it performs at it’s best, this can then help to prevent symptoms like Dizziness and Vertigo.
If vertigo is coming from an inner ear condition then we can perform and teach you positioning manoeuvres to help correct the inner ear malfunction.
Your balance centre is located in the inner ear and this area of the body sends information to the central nervous system about your body position and movement. Sometimes debris may settle in the inner ear and positioning manoeuvres can assist in moving the debris that may be impacting the inner ear, which may be causing your Vertigo and Dizziness.
Effectiveness of manual therapies: the UK evidence report; “Spinal manipulation/mobilization is effective in adults for: acute, subacute, and chronic low back pain; migraine and cervicogenic headache; cervicogenic dizziness; manipulation/mobilization is effective for several extremity joint conditions; and thoracic manipulation/mobilization is effective for acute/subacute neck pain.” (See here)
Rib Misalignment:
Rib misalignment is less common in comparison to Thoracic Misalignment, as it often causes shooting pain that usually refers around the side or front of the chest. This is often noticed when you are breathing, sneezing, or coughing. In mild cases, there is a slight discomfort where patients often remark as not being able to get a full breath in.
Thoracic Misalignment:
Thoracic misalignment is often described as the feeling of a pinched nerve between the shoulders, which can vary in terms of the intensity of local pain to sharp strong shooting pain.
The early symptoms includes Muscular stiffness and tightness, decreased range of motion on the shoulders, pain on sneezing or coughing, as well as, discomfort between the shoulder blades at night. In some bad cases may also causes headaches or migraines, where there is pain shooting or referring up to the neck, shoulder/s and arms on movement.
It could also cause a referral of pain around the chest. Thoracic misalignment often causes shoulder issues such as frozen shoulder. If the condition is left untreated, Thoracic Misalignment would start to cause wear and tear of the thoracic discs and joints. The pain would then increase and become more frequent, or maybe even constant.
Rotator Cuff Tendonitis
Impingement Syndrome/Bursitis
Labral Tears
Bicipital Tendonitis
Frozen Shoulder/Adhesive Capsulitis
Golfers/Tennis Elbow
Similar to the spine, our elbows, shoulders, hands and wrists perform complex movements and functions. So due to the high range of mobility in these parts of the body, the joints can lose their ability to function normally if they are out of place. This can lead to pain, stiffness and weakness. The ability of the shoulder to perform optimally is also dependent on proper function of the arm, neck, and mid-back. Therefore, if you have problems in any one of these areas, you should see our Chiropractor as soon as you can.
Bursitis
Osteoarthritis
Piriformis Syndrome
Sacroiliac Syndrome
Labral Tears
Muscle Strains
Heel Pain/ Plantar Fasciits or “heel spurs”
Metatarsalgia
Shin Splints or Medial Tibial Stress Syndrome
Achilles tendonitis
Do you have leg, knee, buttock, hip or low back weakness or pain? Do your feet flare out or in? Does one leg appear shorter than the other? Do your joints “click” when you walk? Any of these symptoms can be a sign of a dysfunctional hip complex that can cause a knock on effect into the knees, ankles and feet.
Some Patients have foot arches that collapse, so may need orthotic fitting. We also mould Orthotics at Lake Road Chiropractic – See Orthotics section here. So it’s time to get a Chiropractic check-up!
Scoliosis
Scoliosis is a disorder in which there is a sideways curve to the spine. This is directly related to spinal misalignment, as the spine should be straight. Scoliosis causes the curve in the spine to take on an “s” or “c “shape.
Often times, this is a product of genetics and/or environmental factors and a number of causes can lead to Scoliosis. Most Scoliosis tend to be due to an unknown cause and are spontaneous in nature. They can be attributed to congenital spine deformities (cerebral palsy, Spina bifida, etc) and neuromuscular issues, and they can also occur after trauma to the spine. The curvature will put stress and strain on the joints and muscles that balance out the spine, so this can potentially increase the degeneration of the spine.
A Chiropractor is able to naturally address the causes of Scoliosis and its symptoms. By first understanding your symptoms and their causes, we can more appropriately educate you regarding the clinical condition of Scoliosis.
Whiplash
During a rear-end collision, the lower neck goes into hyperextension (“backward bend”), while the upper neck goes into flexion. This means that the bottom and top parts of the neck are going in opposite directions during the initial phase of a whiplash, which forms the letter ‘S.’ This sequence of events has been captured with cineradiography, which shows the movement of each joint of the spine with motion x-ray. In a 6.5G impact, for example, the motion between C7 and T1 is supposed to be about two degrees, but researchers have found that the joint is moving about 20 degrees – or 10 times more than it is supposed to. This leads to a whole host of issues that need to be corrected or can lead to chronic long-term symptoms.
Forty-three per cent of patients will suffer long-term symptoms following ‘whiplash’ injury, for which no conventional treatment has proven to be effective. A retrospective study was undertaken to determine the effects of Chiropractic in a group of patients who had been referred with chronic ‘whiplash’ syndrome. 93% of patients improved following Chiropractic treatment. (See here)
Posture
Signs of bad posture include:
Head is too far forward (Forward Head Carriage)
Rounded/Slumped Shoulders
Hunched Midback
Uneven shoulders
Increased curve in the low back
Tilted Pelvis
Your Chiropractor can help you to maintain and correct your posture through Chiropractic adjustments, exercises and recommendations on proper positions during different activities.
Poor posture is becoming a bigger issue as people sit for longer periods of time both at home and work. Children and teenagers are spending a lot of time looking down at Tablets and Phones.
Whether it is causing you pain yet or not, the more your body slumps, the more pressure you put on your joints and muscles, which over time leads to pain and more significant changes. By finding the specific changes in your spine causing your poor posture we can help improve and fix the problem so you can maintain good posture all the time.
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