Chiro – ‘hand’ + Greek praktikos ‘practical’, from prattein ‘do’.
In today’s world of musculoskeletal medicine, there has never been more options for patients to receive care.
By definition, a chiropractor’s primary form of examination is the placing of hands on the patient. The act of placing hands on a patient in order to assess musculoskeletal imbalance is a dying art, and something that all doctors should employ when assessing physical issues.
A chiropractor’s primary tool of assessment is their hand. By placing them on the patient, the doctor is able to check texture, tensile strength, motion, inflammation, and general health of tissue—all within a few moments. Well-trained chiropractors send all this tactile information from our hands back to our brains to make an educated assessment of the issue.
Tools of a Chiropractor
- Case history provided by the patient.
- Intake performed by the doctor with the feedback from the patient.
- Visual inspection of the patient in ranges of the area of chief complaint, as well as range of motion, and movement activities. When a patient come into our office we are noticing how they sit, stand, and ambulated into a treatment area. All these things help us understand how the patient moves during their activities of daily living.
- Palpation of the area of chief complaint, as well as the surrounding tissue.
- Orthopedic and range of motion testing to help qualify the injury.
- Actual treatment to provide relief, but also assess pliability of tissue involved, gain information regarding active and passive range of motion, and get a better understanding of patient’s level of pain.
- At the Center For Spine Care and Mobility, we have the unique opportunity to integrate our services with other trained musculoskeletal specialists such as physical therapists, massage therapists, acupuncturists, and medical interventions. Together we can prescribe a unique treatment plan based on our findings to give the patient the best chance of healing in the quickest amount of time.
Learn more about our chiropractic treatments in NYC.
Chiropractors in NYC — Low Back Pain Case Study
As an example, we recently had a patient present with low back pain. The pain had been significant for more than three months, and it was affecting the patient’s ability to run for long periods of time. There was no pain when the patient began their run, but became apparent after approximately 10 minutes of running.
The pain was unilateral and traveled from their low back to their right leg, above the knee. Once the patient stopped running the pain reduced, but lingered for more than one day. Their primary care physician diagnosed it as sciatica and prescribed NSAIDs and rest which helped minimally.
Upon examination, it was deduced that the patient had an issue with her gluteus mediums and piriformis. Her big gluteus maximus was functioning fine but the smaller secondary muscles were binding up and constricting her sciatic nerve, and vasculature that course down the leg. Although her primary physician was correct in their diagnosis, the specifics of the issue was not addressed. This is why palpating structures and knowing correct form and function are so important.
Treating Pain with Chiropractic
This patient was treated with a combination of physical therapy, active release technique, chiropractic adjustments, massage and trigger point injections. They received care twice a week and were pain free in four weeks.The power of an accurate diagnosis combined with the integration of multiple services is what allowed this patient to heal in such a short period of time. Here at the Center For Spine Care and Mobility, we collectively focus on our areas of expertise which gives the patient the best chance to heal effectively. Integrative, consistent, professional, and exceptional care is what makes the difference.
I have included a short video to illustrate active release technique of the low back and hip muscles. We work bilaterally in order to be thorough in our treatment and to get a baseline of what normal tissue should feel like.
Call us today at (212) 475-8104 to schedule an appointment with one of our NYC chiropractors.
