Blog Layout
Common Chiropractic Modalities
leon • Dec 22, 2018
Although their main method of treatment is spinal manipulation, many chiropractors also use other therapies to treat their patients. Some of the most common treatments chiropractic doctors recommend includes therapeutic exercise and stretching, spinal traction, manual soft tissue therapy, transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation (TENS), ultrasound, and others.
Modalities are defined as “Any physical agent applied to produce therapeutic changes to biologic tissues; includes but not limited to thermal, acoustic, light, mechanical, or electric energy.” They can be attended OR non-attended.
Common Chiropractic Modalities:
- Massage and Soft Tissue Mobilization. Massage is defined as the rubbing and kneading of muscles and joints by the hands especially to relieve tension. Soft tissue mobilization is a specific assessment, evaluation, and treatment of soft tissues (ligaments, muscles, tendons, and fascia) for the purpose of creating beneficial effects on the nervous, musculoskeletal, lymph, and circulatory systems.
- Spinal Traction. Many chiropractors use spinal traction, in which traction devices are applied to distract areas of the spine. This treatment helps to gently separate the vertebrae resulting in disc decompression, reduced nerve root pressure, and less pain.
- Ultrasound. Therapeutic ultrasound is a form of deep heat therapy created by sound waves. When applied to soft tissues and joints, the sound waves are a form of micro-massage that help reduce swelling, increase blood flow, and decrease pain, stiffness, and muscle spasms.
- Heat and cold. Chiropractors may alternate between heat and ice therapy to help patients treat back pain. Ice packs may be used to numb the back for a 10 to 15 minute period and then switched with a heating pad, heat wrap or hot water bottle to restore blood flow to the area and promote faster healing.
- Dietary management. Many chiropractors will provide patients with tips on how an improved diet may help with their back pain, and some may recommend dietary supplements after spinal manipulation.
- Cold Laser. Unlike standard lasers, the cold laser produces light without heat. That makes it a worthwhile piece of equipment for treating injured areas and encouraging cell function and healing. For some injuries, heat can make the situation worse. That’s not true of cold lasers.
- Therapeutic Exercise. Chiropractors commonly prescribe specific strengthening exercises for their patients with back, neck, and extremity problems. These exercises can help decrease pain, prevent muscle deterioration, promote joint health, increase strength, stability, and range of motion, and protect against new or recurring injuries.
- Transcutaneous Electric Nerve Stimulation (TENS). A TENS unit is a small, battery-powered, portable muscle stimulation machine that can be used at home to help control pain. Variable intensities of electric current are used to control pain. This treatment is recommended to help patients get through periods of severe (acute) pain.
- Interferential Current. Interferential current (IFC) is another type of TENS therapy. This mode uses high-frequency electrical impulses to reduce pain deep within a patient’s tissue. For sensitive patients, IFC is a good substitute, since the high frequency meets less skin resistance than a TENs unit.
- Lifestyle Changes. Good health is much more than the absence of pain or disease. The lifestyle choices you make on a daily basis can greatly affect your long-term health. Your chiropractor can talk to you about your lifestyle choices, help you sort through and identify unhealthy health habits, and give you practical strategies to deal with and manage them.
The Takeaway
As you can see, chiropractic medicine is more than just spinal manipulations. Chiropractors use a variety of treatment modalities to help the body to heal itself and return the patient to a pain-free and healthy life.
Contact us if you are interested in focusing on wellness, not just the symptoms and view all of our services!
The post Common Chiropractic Modalities appeared first on Leon Chiropractic.
About 31 million Americans experience lower back pain at some point. The Global Burden of Disease study described back pain as the leading cause of disability worldwide. And it's the second most common cause of disability in the U.S.
Various natural remedies can relieve back pain that can reduce medication intake or add benefit to your current medical treatment. Check out these natural pain relief strategies and determine which ones work best for you: Read on to learn more about effective pain relief approaches for chronic backache using natural methods.
Although working from home has its benefits, there are a few things to keep in mind, such as ensuring you maintain a good posture to prevent recurring stress injuries and technical stress on the neck - physical strain on the neck after looking down for more extended periods.
How to deal with back pain Back pain is a leading cause of worldwide disability that prevents people from doing their work or other routine activities. It is the most common reason people frequently visit a doctor or miss their job.
How to deal with Herniated Disc A herniated disc is a condition that can occur anywhere along the spine, but most often in the lower back. It is sometimes called a protruding, bulging, or ruptured disc. It is one of the most common causes of lower back pain and leg or sciatica pain.
Back pain is one of the biggest ailments, for many women during pregnancy! About half to three-quarters of all pregnant women suffer from lower back pain. Although it is easy to recognize the cause of back pain in late pregnancy – blame the belly.
Heavy lifting, repetitive movements, and staying put all day may strain your back. Get the facts about spine-related pain at work and its preventions. The backache, whether it is dull and bearable, or stabbing and sharp, can make it difficult to concentrate on work.
Let's face it, life can be stressful from day to day with busy home, work, and social schedules, and stress certainly plays a role in making any headache worse. Tension headaches are the most common type of headache that people experience.
Restful sleep is more important, now than ever, but getting a good night's sleep can be difficult when you’re stressed out. The last several months have been very stressful times for everyone. Even worse, too little sleep at night can make you feel even more stressed, leading to an exhausting and continuous cycle of counting sheep.
If you are one of the many that suffer from low back pain every morning, your sleeping posture could be to blame. Sleeping in poor positions can put unnecessary pressure on your spine, causing the natural curve to flatten as a result.
We look forward to working with you so that you can live a life of complete health and vitality.