Chiropractic Treatment Clinic For Spine Injuries

 

Chiropractic care can often help treat spinal injuries and manage associated pain. One of the goals of chiropractic care – both as preventative medicine and as a treatment for ailments – is to provide services that are as non-invasive and conservative as possible. This means, when possible, a chiropractor will help you help your body to heal itself, rather than prescribing medications or surgeries.

 

If you have suffered a spinal injury, chiropractic care may be able to help your spine heal and, in the meantime, may help manage the pain being caused by the injury. This is largely dependent on the type of spinal injury you have sustained. If you believe you have a spinal injury that is not immediately life threatening, make an appointment with one of our doctors at Advanced Spine and Sports Care as soon as possible.*

 

What should I expect at a chiropractic visit regarding a spinal injury?

 

First of all, be prepared to explain how you sustained the injury in detail. Some important questions your doctor may ask you are:

 

• How did you injure your spine?
• What position were you in when your spine was injured?
• Was the pain immediate or did it develop over time?
• Has the pain lessened, increased, or stay about the same since the time of the injury?
• Has your mobility been lessened since the injury occurred (for instance, has your ability to bend or twist your back or head decreased or has your ability to walk / sit / stand been impaired)?
• Are you taking any medication for the pain or associated symptoms? If so, what is it and what doses are you taking?
• Have you seen any other doctors regarding this injury / the pain? If so, what have they recommended?

 

Depending on your answers to these questions, your chiropractor may need to see an X-Ray or MRI results of the injured area. If you have already had one or both of those done, bring the results with you or send them to our offices ahead of time so that the doctor can examine them.

 

After learning as much as possible about your injury and, if necessary, examining the results of your X-Ray or MRI, your chiropractor will do a physical examination of your spine and it’s associated parts. This may include your head, neck, arms, torso, and legs. Your doctor will likely ask you to do simple things, such as bend or twist your head or torso; touch your toes; hold your arms out in front of you; provide resistance to a gentle force; and other simple tasks.

 

None of this should be painful and if you begin to experience pain or discomfort, let your chiropractor know right away. Not only does your chiropractor not want you to be in pain, the onset of pain or stiffness can be indications of where the problem is and how to treat it. In other words, as unfortunate as pain is, it can be the signpost that leads you to better health.

 

*If you have reason to believe your spinal injury is life threatening, you should call 911 and/or visit the nearest emergency room immediately.

I am being treated by a physician for my spinal injury. Can I see a chiropractor as well?

 

In some cases, physicians and chiropractors work together on patients with spinal injuries. This largely depends on the type and extent of your spinal injury. If you are already being treated by a physician for your spinal injury, your chiropractor may want to speak with your physician before treating you. At the very least, your chiropractor will want your medical history so that he or she understands your injury as thoroughly as possible and how your physician is attacking the problem.

 

I was in a car accident and I think I have whiplash. Can a chiropractor help me?

 

Car accidents are probably the most common causes of spinal injury and associated pain, and stiffness. Whiplash, a term that was coined in 1928, originally meant that your neck had experienced hyperextension and hyperflexion – meaning that it moved much further forward and backward than your normal physiological capabilities. But today we understand that it’s not the extent of the movement, but the speed at which it happens, that can cause damage to tendons, ligaments, muscles, and the spine itself, when the head is rapidly extended and flexed.

 

When you are rear-ended in your car, the car essentially begins to move faster than your body, but the car carries your lower body with it. Meanwhile, your head remains in a slower state, which causes your head to be forced backward as your body is shifted forward. Generally, your car then comes to an abrupt stop and the opposite happens: your head has begun to move forward to catch up with your body, but the car has stopped your body movement short. This causes your head to be quickly flexed forward.

 

Short of fractures to your vertebrae, injuries from whiplash can be hard to detect – but patients know for sure the injury is there, due to what can sometimes be intense related pain. The pain is generally not immediate, but comes on anywhere from 2 to 48 hours later and can last days. Left untreated, whiplash can cause permanent damage and lasting neck and back pain.

 

Chiropractors can help you restore the natural movement and alignment of a spine and neck damaged by whiplash through gentle exercises and light manipulation. We strive to help our whiplash patients achieve optimum health, as soon as possible, following an auto-accident.