Thursday, 23 May 2019

How Chiropractic Care Can Help Neck Pain

Neck pain can be acute (4 weeks or less), subacute (4-12 weeks), or chronic (12 weeks or more), or it can be a functional disability. This kind of pain may begin from muscles, nerves, or any structures in the neck. When a neck is sore and is difficult to move especially to one side, it may be considered as a stiff neck.

In the general population, neck pain is a widespread problem second to low back pain. Approximately 15% of females and 10% of males suffer with chronic ones. The pain affects occupational and other activities of daily living, and also, it affects the quality of life in which it produces a high level of morbidity as a result. Aside from reducing the quality of life, it also carries a high economic cost.

Curing neck problems may be challenging, but there are therapies that can help. It has been shown that chiropractic care and manipulative therapy reduce soreness and improve function in patients with chronic neck pain. Manual therapy has been used for a long time and gets more popular in recent times.

Manual techniques are routinely used in management of neck pain and they provide effective pain relief. These techniques include manipulation and mobilization.

In treating neck pain, chiropractors typically use spinal manipulative therapy to address a segmental joint hypomobility within the cervical spine determined by joint motion palpation and endplay assessment. This involves a specific segmental contact, passive lateral flexion and rotation of the head and neck to the point of increased joint tension followed by a high-velocity low-amplitude (HVLA) thrust. Other form of spinal manipulation chiropractors use aside from HVLA is upper cervical low-force (UCLF) procedures. Particularly, they use a low force thrust and require no lateral flexion or rotation of the head or neck.

Combined with exercise, manipulation is an effective therapy for nonspecific neck pain. In a clinical study, many patients experienced benefit from chiropractic treatment as based upon diminished pain and disability. Many responded quickly to the treatment where 48% of them were recovered at the fourth visit and a significant proportion of patients (65%) continued to improve up to 3 months.

Once your neck pain is treated, your chiropractor may suggest exercise, diet, or lifestyle changes to improve your range of motion, strengthen muscles, and prevent painful relapse. Rather than just treating its symptoms, chiropractic offers treatment to fix the source of the pain. The focus is not just about on the neck. It also includes nutrition, stress management, and lifestyle goals.

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