CHIROPRACTIC
DEFINED
The American
Chiropractic Association (ACA), Based in Arlington, Virginia is
the largest professional association in the world representing
doctors of chiropractic. The ACA provides lobbying, public relations,
professional and educational opportunities for doctors of chiropractic,
funds research regarding chiropractic and health issues, and offers
leadership for the advancement of the profession. The following
is an interpretation of ACA's definition of chiropractic:
Chiropractic
is a health care discipline that specializes in the non-surgical,
non-pharmaceutical treatment of musculoskeletal conditions; i.e.,
those that involve muscle and soft tissues, joints and nerves.
Secondarily, it is concerned with spine-related mechanical obstruction
to the nervous system and the effect it has on general health.
Chiropractic is most often sought to treat complaints such as
back, neck and joint pain; pain radiating to the arms or legs,
and headaches.
Doctors of
Chiropractic practice a manual therapy (hands-on) approach
to health care. The process involves standard orthopedic and neurological
examination, diagnosis and treatment. Chiropractors generally
have broad diagnostic skills and have training in therapeutic
and rehabilitative exercise. Chiropractors typically encourage
their patients to modify their nutritional, dietary and lifestyle
habits to improve quality of health.
The central
therapeutic procedure used by chiropracts is spinal manipulation,
also known as chiropractic adjustments. This manual procedure
is done to restore joint mobility by applying a controlled force
into joints (particularly spinal vertebrae) that have lost some
degree of range of motion and/or aligment relative to adjacent
joint surfaces (commonly referred to as joint dysfunction, or
segmental dysfunction). The procedure is usually delivered by
hand, but small instruments may be incorporated as well.
Joint
dysfunction usually involves injury; either a single
event injury such as a fall or car crash; or micro-injury such
as that which occurs from long periods of repetitive movements
(computer keyboarding, tennis serve, using vibrational equipment,
etc.). In both cases, injured muscles, ligaments and tendons undergo
physical and chemical changes that often lead to inflammation,
pain, and somtimes loss of strength, sensation, and range of motion
(mobility) for the sufferer. Chiropractic adjustments to the involved
joint and soft tissue structures helps restore joint biomechanics,
thereby alleviating pain, reducing muscle spasms and allowing
the structures to heal properly and return to their original state.
In some rare
cases, chiropractic adjustments can causes discomfort. Patients,
especially those who have just started chiropractic treatment
for the first time, and/or those who have conditions that have
reached a chronic level (an injury that occurred
five or more years prior) may experience mild soreness or aching
following treatment that usually resolves in several days.
For many types
of non-emergency musculoskeletal conditions, such as general lower
back pain, chiropractic care can be the primary treatment strategy.
When other medical conditions exist, chiropractic may be complementary
to medical treatment by addressing the musculoskeletal aspects
associated with the condition.
Chiropractic
doctors evaluate patients through clinical examination,
laboratory testing, diagnostic imaging such as skeletal X-ray
and MRI, and other diagnostic interventions to determine if the
case is one that can benefit from chiropractic care. If a patient's
condition requires medical attention (from an MD) chiropractors
will refer the patient to the appropriate specialist.