Tag Archives: adjustments

Chiropractic Case Studies: Neck Pain

There seems to be no limit to the health problems that respond to chiropractic care. How many people suffering, on drugs, facing a life of limitation could be helped by chiropractic care? 

Probably most of them.

Neck painneck pain

The patient is a 55-year-old female who presented with a chief complaint of neck pain, exacerbated by prolonged sitting and standing. The patient also presented with reduced neck range-of-motion (ROM), spasms and tenderness of her left neck muscles, and postural abnormalities.

A patient health history and chiropractic examination was performed and subluxations were located and corrected. By the end of care, the patient’s Verbal Pain Scale score went from a 5/10 pain level to 0/10 pain level. (1)

If you are experiencing neck pain, or know someone who does, please give us a call. We can help before you resort to drugs or surgery!

  1. Herman C, Rallings A. Resolution of cervicalgia following Blair Upper Cervical Technique: a case study & review of the literature. Journal of Upper Cervical Chiropractic Research. December 21, 2017:58-64.

Researching Chiropractic: Lupus

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE)lupus

There seems to be no limit to the health problems that respond to chiropractic care. How many people suffering, on drugs, facing a life of limitation could be helped by chiropractic care? 

Probably most of them.


A 34-year-old woman with SLE went to a chiropractic office for detection of subluxations. Her symptoms included constant chronic pain; constant fibromyalgia-related symptoms; chronic fatigue, anxiety and depression-related symptoms; stiffness in the neck; thyroid problems; menstrual disorder; stomach disorder; mid back pain; irritable bowel; numbness in her feet; low back pain and leg pains.

Using chiropractic analysis, several vertebral subluxation complexes were located.

She received 11 spinal adjustments over the first twelve visits and upon re-examination, she was “much improved.” Her right and left leg pain and numbness in her feet completely resolved and her menstrual disorder completely resolved. In addition, her stomach disorder, irritable bowel syndrome symptoms, systemic lupus erythematosus related symptoms and ADD/ADHD related symptoms were much improved. At her next re-examination, her Raynaud’s, systemic lupus erythematosus, depression and nausea were all completely resolved. She also stopped taking seven medications including hydrocodone, tramadol, flexeril, gabapentin and Wellbutrin®.

Her blood work revealed resolution of systemic lupus erythematosus. (1)

  1. Harden J, Baggett BA. Resolution of systemic lupus erythematosus following chiropractic care to reduce vertebral subluxation utilizing the Pierce Results SystemT: a case report & review of the literature. Annals of Vertebral Subluxation Research. December 18, 2017:297-311.

Researching Chiropractic: Constipation

constipationChronic constipation in a 5-year-old

A 5-year-old girl suffering from abdominal pain (gastritis) and chronic constipation began chiropractic care. MDs could not find any cause. A high fiber diet and laxative use as directed by her medical doctor was not effective.

Chiropractic care was initiated. She was seen and adjusted two times a week for two weeks, followed by one visit a week for 10 weeks.

At visit number 12, the patient no longer complained of abdominal pain and the patient’s mother reported an improvement in the patient’s demeanor as well as a complete resolution of her chronic constipation.

Do you know someone who suffers from constipation and isn’t finding relief? Please share this with them. We can help!

Wilson J, Duncan J. Resolution of chronic constipation in a 5-year-old female following chiropractic care: a case study & review of the literature. Journal of Pediatric, Maternal & Family Health – Chiropractic. 2017;3:141-146.

Why Lifetime Chiropractic Care?

You’ve probably heard the old myth that “once you go to a chiropractor, you have to go for the rest of your life.” lifetime chiropractic care

It’s not true.

However, we do have many patients who chose to see us once a month or even more frequently.

What’s going on?

Stress levels

Those who face physical, chemical, or emotional stress (that’s all of us) often find regular chiropractic adjustments helpful in correcting muscle tightness and the resulting postural changes.

Avoiding a relapse

Because long-standing spinal problems can produce weakened areas that are susceptible to repeated problems, regular care may often help strengthen supporting muscles and ligaments, avoiding a flare-up.

Prevention

Regular chiropractic checkups can often detect smaller problems before they become more serious (and difficult to correct).

Wellness

Being our best starts with an interference-free nervous system.

Gravity

And let’s not forget the relentless effects that gravity places on our body. Regular chiropractic care helps maintain proper spinal curves to accommodate the compression of spinal joints due to gravity.

Remember, how long you choose to benefit from chiropractic care is always up to you.

We are here to serve you.  How can we help you live life to it’s fullest?

(THANKS, PATIENTMEDIA)

How is chiropractic different from regular (orthodox) medicine?

questions-and-answers-about-chiropracticQuestion: How is chiropractic different from regular (orthodox) medicine?

Answer: Chiropractic and medicine have different philosophies about life and health.

Perhaps the best way to explain the difference is by looking at how chiropractic (and other vitalistic/natural healing arts) approaches symptoms as opposed to how medicine views symptoms.

Chiropractors view the body as intelligent, and symptoms are mechanisms the body uses to re-balance and return to homeostasis. Chiropractors respect symptoms and do not work to suppress them.

The medical approach, on the other hand, sees the body as a passive “machine,” and symptoms as bad, with no purpose other than to cause damage. Therefore, MDs prescribe drugs to fight, suppress or counteract symptoms. While people on drugs may feel better (while the drugs last), constant symptom suppression drives disease deeper into the body leading to chronic (permanent) illness.

Chiropractors promote natural healing by helping your body use its symptoms to cleanse and detoxify. Chiropractors respect the wisdom of the body when it comes to symptoms.

Your Hips and Chiropractic: A Natural Alignment

They’re your hips!hips-and-chiropractic

You need them for a good golf swing, dancing, a healthy pregnancy and to support your spine (and head). They anchor your legs so you can walk and you sit on them too.

Your hips are really two large bones (each made up of three fused bones) that are attached to your sacrum – the base of your spine. They are strapped to your sacrum with lots of ligaments. Around your hips are lots of tendons that attach to many muscles.

What happens if your hips are out of alignment?

If your spine is out of alignment (it’s subluxated), your hips may “do the twist” causing one leg to appear shorter than the other.

One leg isn’t really shorter than the other. It just seems that way because your legs attach to your hips. If one hip is a little higher than the other, then one leg appears longer and one appears shorter. This is most obvious when you lie down. That’s why chiropractors sometimes have patients lie down (usually face down) to measure their leg length difference. This is one sign your body structure is off-balance.

Why do my hips hurt?

Apart from causing problems with your tailor, uneven hips can cause unnatural wear and tear on your spine, arthritis and/or lumbar (lower back) disc bulging, any of which can lead to leg and sciatica pain. If your pubic bones (the front of your hips) are not aligned it may cause sacroiliac pain and pain during pregnancy and childbirth.

Unhappy hips also can cause fatigue and exhaustion because you will be out of alignment with gravity.

Signs of Hip Problems

Signs of hip problems include:

  • a bad golf swing
  • difficulty standing or sitting for long periods
  • leg problems
  • knee pain
  • foot problems such as bunions
  • shoulder problems – your hips and shoulders work together – if one is moving improperly the motion of the other will be affected.

Chiropractic care and your hips

A chiropractic checkup will help ensure a balanced and healthy spine, hip, pelvis and femur (thigh bone) relationship. This ensure that you have a more stable, balanced pedestal from which to work, play, carry children (especially if you are pregnant), and be pain-free and have more energy.

A healthy spine-hip relationship is especially important during childhood – that’s why infants, babies and children of all ages should get a chiropractic checkup. It can help ensure a healthier body for life.

If you are experiencing any discomfort or pain in you hips please schedule an appointment with us. We’d love to help you. Call 517 627 4547.

 

Research Source: De Jong MR, der Elst MV, Hartholt KA. Drug-related falls in older patients: implicated drugs, consequences, and possible prevention strategies. Ther Adv Drug Saf. 2013;4(4):141-146.

Question: What is Chiropractic Care For?

chiropractic careAnswer: Ask different people what chiropractic care is for and you’ll hear:

  • Chiropractic Care is for menstrual problems
  • Chiropractic Care is for ear infections
  • Chiropractic Care is for a better golf swing
  • Chiropractic Care is for headaches
  • Chiropractic Care is for better concentration and higher grades
  • Chiropractic Care is for asthma
  • Chiropractic Care is for autism
  • Chiropractic Care is for low back pain
  • Chiropractic Care is for disk problems
  • Chiropractic is for neck pain
  • Chiropractic Care is for infertility …

 Get the point?

The list can go on and on because people often think chiropractic is locating and correcting subluxations to help their condition or problem. But in reality….

The purpose of chiropractic is to make your body function closer to its full potential. Chiropractors do that by locating and correcting areas of spine and nerve stress called subluxations. Subluxations can weaken or damage every tissue, organ and gland in your body.

What do you use Chiropractic Care for?

Each one of our clients is very different with a unique set of issues that we treat. Sometimes people come in with one complaint and after chiropractic care, several issues are better. We want to hear what you do use (or could use) our care to treat. We want to help you today!

Can Chiropractic Care help with Colic?

YES! Chiropractic Care helps with colic and infant vomiting

colic and chiropractic care

Although a lot of people associate chiropractic with low back, neck and hip problems or headaches and migraines, chiropractic care doesn’t “treat”a particular disease. Rather it corrects a dangerous form of spine/nerve stress called the subluxation. This may be causing an infant’s colic.

Infants may suffer from subluxations as a result of a difficult birth (especially when forceps or vacuum extraction are used) or a fall, in which case the child begins life with subluxations in his/her body and the potential for serious health problems any time in their life.

In fact, any time an infant has any health problems it is essential they be checked for subluxations. We’ve reported on case studies showing that babies and toddlers with colic, projectile vomiting, failure to thrive, sleeping problems, eczema, vision and hearing problems and many other conditions respond to chiropractic care.

Every baby and child should have a chiropractic checkup.

They may not be able to complain about pain or a problem now, but we can locate and correct subluxations in them before they are able to verbalize their problems.

happy baby no colic

The #1 Question Asked of Chiropractors

An age old question that we get time after time is:

“Why should I return, especially if I feel fine?”

Delays have dangerous ends. –William Shakespeare

You entered our office feeling terrible and now you feel great. So why does your chiropractor suggest coming in again?”Why can’t I return when I’m feeling bad?” you may ask.

“I Feel Fine” Health Carei feel fine

We’ve all seen people looking like death warmed over who say they “feel fine”; yet they have no energy, sleep poorly, are tired, depressed, have aches and pains, headaches or backaches.Too many people who “feel fine” have a sudden heart attack, stroke, debilitating pain or are diagnosed with a serious disease.Sadly, too many people have lost touch with how they really feel. They’ve lost sensitivity or ignore their body’s subtle signs of dis-ease. Don”t make that mistake!

Why More Visits?I feel fine, car accident

Most people first visit our office after they’ve had years of long-standing subluxations. By that time “gunk”(scar tissue or fibrosis) builds up around the spinal discs, nerves and joints and prevents complete healing. That”s one reason why 86% of those in automobile accidents still have symptoms ten years later. (1)

I feel finePosture

Long-standing subluxations also cause postural changes and tender muscle areas (trigger or tender spots). (2)You may “feel fine” but when someone touches a “hot spot”you jump! Scar tissue may require months or years of adjustments before your spine is strong again. (3) The longer you wait, the more scar tissue “gunk”builds up. (4) Because of that there’s a good chance that you”ll be back in our office in the not-too- distant future with symptoms that may take longer to go away (“I don’t understand it doc, the last time I felt better after a couple of visits”).

Why settle for less?

Many people visit chiropractors only when they’re sick or in pain. That’s a lot better than using drugs or surgery, but chiropractic has so much more to offer. Keep your body free of subluxations so it may continue healing; so that it may promote a healthier body, with less stress, more energy and greater resistance to disease.Why be content to be merely free from pain when you can also ensure better health, vitality, and strength for yourself and your entire family for their entire lives?Are you and your family carrying the silent killer, the subluxation? Only a chiropractic check up can tell; come in for a checkup – and bring the family too!

 

 

  1. Watkinson A et al. Prognostic factors in soft tissue injuries of the cervical spine. British Journal of Accident Surgery. 1991;22(4):307-309.
  2. Hiemeyer K et al. Dependence of tender points upon posture – a key to the understanding of fibromyalgia syndrome. Journal of Manual Medicine. 1990;5:169-174.
  3. Dishman R. Review of the literature supporting a scientific basis for the chiropractic subluxation complex. JMPT. 1985;8:163-174.
  4. Kelman Cohen I et al. Wound healing, biochemical and clinical aspects. New York: W.B. Saunders
Co., 1992:110.

Researching Chiropractic: Case Studies

drawing of spinal column and nervesChiropractic clinical case histories have been a regular feature of our patient newsletter since its inception. There seems to be no limit to the health problems that respond to chiropractic care. How many people suffering, on drugs, facing a life of limitation could be helped by chiropractic care?

Probably most of them.

Morton’s neuroma.

Morton’s neuroma is a nerve tumor in the foot. It is a painful condition that people describe as “walking on a marble.” It usually affects the ball of the foot, often between the 3rdand 4th toes and may cause a sharp, burning pain or numbness. The medical or podiatry approach is to give corticosteroid (cortisone) injections or surgically to cut out the tumor.

This is the case of a 63-year-old woman who suffered with Morton’s neuroma in her right foot for ten years. She sought chiropractic care for a variety of health complaints.

For one month her vertebral subluxations were addressed and reduced using specific chiropractic care. During this period her Morton’s neuroma symptoms completely disappeared and in addition she reported improvement in her digestion, sleep and ability to move without pain.

Source: Lanoue B, Treahy-Geofreda T, Russell D.Resolution of Morton’s Neuroma in an elderly patient receiving Activator Methods Chiropractic Technique to correct subluxation: a case study. Annals of Vertebral Subluxation Research. January 4, 2016:1-5.

Failure To Thrive

Oral thrush and inconsolable crying in a 4-month-old. This is the case of a baby medically diagnosed with “failure to thrive” (FTT). FTT is determined when a baby’s weight or size is significantly below that of other children of similar age and same gender. The infant was reported to have had birth trauma from a nuchal cord – the umbilical cord was completely wrapped around the fetal neck (360 degrees).

The child was 4-months-old when she was brought to the chiropractor. She was suffering from inconsolable crying, oral thrush (an overgrowth of the fungus candida albicans in the mouth and throat), chronic diarrhea and was dangerously underweight.

Chiropractic examination detected vertebral subluxations at C1-C4 (upper neck) and T3-T4 (upper back).

She received chiropractic adjustments from the first visit and afterwards was checked for vertebral subluxations that were corrected when indicated for seven weeks. Her FTT symptoms began to resolve after the first visit and completely resolved by the seventh week of care. 

Source: Neally R, Alcantara J. Resolution of failure to thrive in a 4-month-old infant following adjustment of subluxation: case study & selective review of the literature. Journal of Pediatric, Maternal & Family Health – Chiropractic. 2015;4:149-153. 

Hypothyroidism reduction under chiropractic care.

A 44-year-old woman presented herself to the chiropractor with complaints of upper shoulder and pain between the shoulder blades that occurred after a motor vehicle accident 23 years earlier!

In addition, she had been prescribed ArmourThyroid® in order to treat symptoms of low thyroid function (hypothyroidism).

Cervical or neck x-rays revealed that she had an 80.7% loss of normal neck curve (hypo-lordosis) in addition to vertebral subluxations.

The patient received spinal adjustments to reduce her vertebral subluxation complexes (VSC), and to improve her spinal and postural alignment over a seven-month period.

Thirty days into care the patient began exhibiting signs/symptoms of an overactive thyroid (hyperthyroidism). Her chiropractor suggested that she have her thyroid function checked by her endocrinologist to see if her prescribed thyroid medication should be re-evaluated. After serum lab evaluation, the patient’s endocrinologist instructed the patient to significantly reduce her thyroid medication.

Source: Bak AD, Engelhardt PR. Improvement in cervical curve and hypothyroidism following reduction of subluxation utilizing chiropractic Biophysics: a case study & selective review of the literature. Annals of Vertebral Subluxation Research. December 10, 2015:226-237

We’d like to hear about your experiences with chiropractic care.