When it comes to chiropractic care, you might think that it’s all the same. This isn’t the case. Chiropractic care focuses on ensuring that the skeleton is properly functioning and in alignment. If you think that all adjustments are the same, you would be mistaken. There are over 100 different techniques but chiropractors only use a few.
Why Use Different Techniques
Not every patient has the same treatment. While the main idea that the pain results from problems in the musculoskeletal system or nervous system, the same problems aren’t going to spring up in every patient. There are a variety of different problems a patient might have. For instance, one patient may be out of alignment due to a desk job, whereas another may have recently undergone back or neck surgery. It’s crucial that the chiropractor pays attention to the patient’s history. If he or she doesn’t, the adjustments may not work according to plan.
Spinal Mobilization
If you have osteoporosis or are in need of a gentler adjustment, then spinal mobilization is the best adjustment for you. You can use this adjustment in place of the direct thrust technique. In this technique, the doctor will use slow movements and gentle stretches. This encourages parts of your spine to return to a rightful place.
Direct Thrust
This technique focuses on the spine. It is one of the most popular and common chiropractic adjustments. In this type of adjustment, the chiropractor uses a high-velocity thrust to encourage vertebrae alignment. Often, during this adjustment, you will hear a popping or cracking sound. This is nothing to be worried about, however. In fact, those noises come from the release of gas in the joints.
Articulatory
If you have injured joints, then this form of chiropractic adjustment targets joints so that you can restore them to a full range of motion. The chiropractor will slowly move the arm or leg through range of motions while applying force. This will help remedy any stiffness that you have and also help with improving your mobility.
If you’re new to chiropractic care, it’s important to understand that not all care is the same. Every patient is different. Different patients come in with different issues that they need checked out. How you handle one body is not necessarily the same way that you handle another. Most chiropractors will determine which adjustment techniques to use based on the patient’s injuries and history. To see a chiropractor, contact one today.
Source: Back Pain Doctor Baltimore, MD, Mid-Atlantic Spinal Rehab and Chiropractic