When to Consider Chiropractic Care
Painful joint and back problems can be caused by work, accidents, sports injuries, household chores, and even the stress of daily living.
Chiropractic care may help if you are experiencing aching joints or muscle pain that is affecting your ability to get through the day, or preventing you from doing your favorite activities. It can also help maintain healthy spine and joint function, even if you do not have painful symptoms.
People commonly visit a chiropractor for help with:
- back pain
- neck pain
- headache
- whiplash
- strains and sprains from daily activities
- overuse injuries
- work and sports-related injuries
- arthritis
- restricted movement in the back, shoulders, neck or limbs
What is Chiropractic?
The word ‘chiropractic’ comes from the Greek words cheir (meaning ‘hand’) and praktikos (meaning ‘done’) – namely, done by hand. Chiropractors are primary contact practitioners (which means they can see patients without a referral from a General Practitioner). They focus on treating the spine by using their hands to examine and treat health conditions related to the bones, muscles and joints (musculoskeletal problems).
Chiropractors are trained to recommend exercises to treat and rehabilitate health conditions related to the bones, muscles and joints, as well as to provide nutritional, dietary and lifestyle advice.
They use a broad range of methods to diagnose musculoskeletal problems, including hands-on clinical examination, and diagnostic imaging such as x-rays or MRIs. These and other diagnostic methods are used to determine when chiropractic treatment is appropriate.
If chiropractic care is not appropriate, or if your health condition needs to be co-managed with other health care professionals, your chiropractor will refer you to the appropriate health care provider.
In many cases, such as lower back pain, chiropractic care may be a person’s primary method of treatment. For some medical conditions, chiropractic services may complement or support medical treatment by relieving the musculoskeletal aspects associated with the condition.