Chiropractic Care for Back Pain

Chiropractic Care for Lower Back Pain Relief

Chiropractic care is a surgery-free method for treating pain. Generally, chiropractic care focuses on manipulating the spinal region to re-align the body. It assists in the natural self-healing process that makes up the core belief of chiropractic care.

How Can Pure Health Clinic Treat Lower Back Pain?

At Pure Health Clinic, Dr. Hohn will start with an examination where they will review the patient’s medical history and make a diagnosis. Some of the questions that should be asked during the initial meeting will help Dr. Hohn give an accurate diagnosis of the patient’s back pain, allowing for the most effective treatment.

Here’s a short list of questions that are typically asked during the first examination:

• How long the patient has been experiencing the back pain.
• What (if any) activities particularly agitate the patient’s back pain.
• What potentially caused the back pain.
• Previous injuries/general medical history.
• Previous attempted treatment paths.

With this information, Dr. Hohn will be able to diagnose the patient and begin with a treatment plan.

The Treatment Plan

The treatment plan will likely include three things: manual adjustments for the patient, lifestyle counseling, and nutritional recommendations. When a patient follows all of these suggestions, they will be able to manage and eventually overcome their back pain while living a generally more healthy lifestyle overall.

Within the treatment plan, multiple goals will be set by the Dr. Hohn to help the patient overcome their pain and disabilities. Active, patient-driven care like exercise, lifestyle modifications, and ergonomic assistants are used to help accomplish the goals of the treatment plan. The patient-driven portion of the treatment is a significant part of what makes chiropractic care effective and long-lasting in the overall wellness of the patient.

Back pain is split into two types: acute and chronic. Acute pain is any case that lasts six weeks or fewer. If a patient has been suffering for more than six weeks, they are considered to have chronic back pain, which is likely caused by a far more serious injury than a case of acute back pain. Chronic back pain may be caused by multiple injuries, re-injuries, and/or other issues.

Chiropractic Adjustments

Manipulations are broken up into two main types: spinal manipulation and mobilization. 

Spinal manipulation, or manual manipulation, uses controlled, fast movements with the aim of improving mobility and functionality in joints while reducing the irritability of nerves. This is commonly called “chiropractic adjustment” and often involves loud cracks or pops. Manipulation will typically be included early-on in the treatment of lower back pain.

Here are some common chiropractic adjustments:

• Articulatory involves moving joints through their full range of motion to increase movement. This technique is gentle and low-velocity.
• Direct thrust technique is a high-velocity, low-amplitude thrust that often results in cracks. This motion re-aligns part of the spine.
• The functional technique involves applying pressure to a tight joint until the patient feels release.
• Table adjustments use a gentler way of applying direct pressure, using a special table with a drop piece which releases at the same time the chiropractor applies a direct thrust.

Mobilization

On the other hand, mobilization is better described as a slow, low-velocity stretching of the muscles and joints. This movement allows them to have an increased range of motion through gentle manipulation.

It’s likely a chiropractor will suggest stretches and exercises that can be done at home for the patient to continue opening up their muscles and joints and sustain their improved mobility.

Chiropractic Tools Used For Lower Back Pain

Dr. Hohn uses multiple tools to help in alleviating back pain. Some of these tools include:

• Heat lamps: Infrared lamps are used to loosen and warm up muscles to make spinal adjustments easier.
• Traction tables: These look like large massage tables and are often automated. These help to pull the body out to stretch the muscles and re-align the spine.
• Roller tables: A rolling function is occasionally built-in to a traction table, or it can be standalone equipment. Patients will lie facing up on this table and the rollers move back and forth along the spine.

Finding Relief with Pure Health Clinic

Overall, Pure Health Clinic offer multiple methods for relieving back pain, centered on re-aligning the body as a whole to assist in the patient’s range of motion and wellness. As one of the top reasons people seek out a local chiropractor is there are plenty of well-tested treatment options to help patients re-align their spine and systems as a whole.

Chiropractic care has been proven effective in the relief of back pain by multiple studies, and continues to be one of the most popular solutions to both acute and chronic lower back pain.

Contact Pure Health Clinic today to start finding lasting relief for your lower back pain! 517-579-2537