What is Chiropractic Care?
Chiropractic is a health care profession focusing on disorders of the musculoskeletal system and the nervous system, and the effects of these disorders on general health. Chiropractic care is used most often to treat back pain, neck pain, joint pain and headaches.
Doctors of Chiropractic are often referred to as chiropractors or chiropractic physicians practice a drug-free, hands-on approach to health care. Chiropractors manage patient examinations, diagnosis and treatment. Chiropractors are trained to recommend therapeutic and rehabilitative exercises through the use of broad diagnostic skills. Many also provide nutritional, dietary and lifestyle counseling.
The most common therapeutic procedure performed by doctors of chiropractic is known as "spinal manipulation," also called "chiropractic adjustment." The purpose of manipulation is to restore joint mobility and open up clear communication between the brain and the rest of the body. This is done by manually applying a controlled force into joints that have become hypo mobile - or may be limited in their movement - as a result of a tissue injury. Tissue injury can be caused by a single traumatic event, such as improper lifting of a heavy object, or through repetitive stresses, such as sitting in an awkward position with poor spinal posture for an extended period of time. In either case, injured tissues undergo physical and chemical changes that can cause inflammation, pain, and diminished function for the sufferer. Manipulation, or adjustment of the affected joint and tissues, restores mobility, thereby alleviating pain and muscle tightness, and allowing tissues to heal.
Chiropractic adjustment rarely causes discomfort. However, patients may sometimes experience mild soreness or aching following treatment that usually resolves within 12 to 48 hours. In cases such as lower back pain, chiropractic care may be the primary method of treatment. Chiropractic care has also been shown to help in the healing process of many diseases and disorders.
Doctors of chiropractic perform many tests to determine when chiropractic treatment is appropriate or when it is not appropriate. Chiropractors will readily refer patients to the appropriate health care provider when chiropractic care is not suitable for the patient's condition, or the condition warrants co-management in conjunction with other members of the health care team.
Where did Chiropractic care begin?
Chiropractic care can be traced back to the beginning of recorded time. Writings from China and Greece written in 2700 B.C. and 1500 B.C. mention spinal manipulation and the maneuvering of the lower extremities to ease low back pain. Hippocrates, the Greek physician, who lived from 460 to 357 B.C., also published texts detailing the importance of chiropractic care. "Get knowledge of the spine, for this is the requisite for many diseases" was a quote from Hippocrates.
Daniel David Palmer founded the profession of Chiropractic in 1895. Palmer was well read in medical journals of his time and had great knowledge of the developments that were occurring throughout the world regarding anatomy and physiology. In 1897, the Palmer School of Chiropractic was established, which has continued to be one of the most prominent chiropractic colleges in the nation.
The research that has emerged from "around the world", has yielded incredibly influential results which have changed and shaped the perceptions of chiropractic care today. Chiropractic in New Zealand published a report in 1979 which strongly supported the efficacy of chiropractic care and elicited medical cooperation in conjunction with chiropractic care. The 1993 Manga study published in Canada investigated the cost effectiveness of chiropractic care which concluded that chiropractic care would save hundreds of millions of dollars annually with regard to work disability payments and direct health care costs.
Doctors of chiropractic have become pioneers in the field of non-invasive care promoting science-based approaches to a variety of ailments. A continuing dedication to chiropractic research could lead to even more discoveries in preventing and combating maladies in future years.
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