What Conditions Do Chiropractors Commonly Help With?
People often associate chiropractic care with back pain—and for good reason. Low back pain is one of the most common reasons people visit a chiropractor. But chiropractic care is not limited to the low back. There are many common conditions chiropractic can help with, depending on the individual and what is contributing to the problem.
Chiropractors evaluate and manage a variety of musculoskeletal problems involving the spine, joints, muscles, and related structures. Depending on the findings of an examination, chiropractic care may be appropriate for problems involving the neck, shoulders, hips, knees, ankles, wrists, jaw, and other areas of the body.
At Quality Care Chiropractic, however, the question is not simply, “Do chiropractors treat this condition?”
A better question is: “What is contributing to your symptoms, how is it affecting your function, and is chiropractic care appropriate for you?”
Common Conditions Chiropractic Can Help With
There are many reasons someone may decide to visit a chiropractor. Some of the most common conditions and complaints chiropractors evaluate include:
- Low back pain
- Neck pain and stiffness
- Certain types of headaches
- Joint pain and restricted movement
- Muscle tension and discomfort
- Shoulder and arm complaints
- Elbow and wrist complaints
- Hip and knee complaints
- Ankle and foot complaints
- Jaw (TMJ) discomfort and dysfunction
- Musculoskeletal injuries
- Injuries associated with personal injury cases, particularly auto accidents
- Changes in mobility, flexibility, or physical function
People may also seek chiropractic care because repetitive activities are causing discomfort, an old injury continues to bother them, or everyday movements simply do not feel as comfortable as they once did.
However, two people with the same symptom may have very different underlying problems. Therefore, a diagnosis—or even a list of symptoms—does not automatically determine whether chiropractic care is appropriate.
A Symptom Is Not Always the Same as Its Cause
Consider something as common as a headache.
Headaches can have many different causes. Some headaches may have a musculoskeletal component involving the neck and surrounding tissues. Others may result from conditions that require a different type of healthcare.
The same principle applies to back pain, neck pain, dizziness, numbness, weakness, joint pain, and many other complaints.
That is why determining which conditions chiropractic can help with requires more than simply matching a symptom to a treatment.
Chiropractic care should begin with an evaluation.
Looking at the Person as a Whole
We recognize that the human body functions as an integrated system.
Musculoskeletal function, movement, sensory input, the nervous system, physical activity, sleep, stress, nutrition, and other aspects of health interact with one another. Chiropractic care can be one component of helping a person function better.
This broader perspective does not mean that chiropractic care treats every health condition. Instead, it means that we consider more than the location of a symptom when evaluating a patient.
We want to understand how you are functioning, what factors may be contributing to your problem, and where chiropractic care may appropriately fit within the bigger picture of your health.
We Look Beyond the Location of Your Pain
Where you feel discomfort does not always tell us where the problem originates.
For example, a painful shoulder may involve the shoulder itself. However, symptoms can also be influenced by the neck or surrounding muscles and joints. Likewise, leg symptoms may originate locally or may be associated with structures in the lower back.
Problems with movement in one region may also affect how another part of the body functions.
This becomes particularly important after an auto accident. The forces involved in a collision can affect multiple areas of the body, and symptoms do not necessarily appear all at once.
At Quality Care Chiropractic, we take the time to listen to your concerns, review your health history, and perform a thorough chiropractic examination.
Depending on your individual presentation, the examination may include evaluation of posture, movement, range of motion, orthopedic findings, neurological function, spinal and extremity joints, and other clinically relevant factors.
The purpose is to better understand what may be contributing to your problem before deciding how—or whether—we should treat it.
Chiropractic Care Is More Than Treating a List of Conditions
It can be tempting to think of healthcare as a list:
Headache? Chiropractic.
Back pain? Chiropractic.
Shoulder pain? Chiropractic.
But responsible healthcare is more nuanced than that.
A chiropractor’s role includes determining whether a patient’s presentation is consistent with a problem that falls within the chiropractor’s scope of practice. Sometimes chiropractic care is appropriate. Sometimes another healthcare provider, additional testing, or a referral may be more appropriate.
At Quality Care Chiropractic, we believe recognizing that distinction is an important part of providing quality care.
Treatment Should Fit the Patient
Even among conditions chiropractic can help with, treatment should reflect the individual patient rather than simply the name of the condition.
Depending on your examination findings and goals, care at Quality Care Chiropractic may involve spinal or extremity adjustments, soft-tissue techniques, therapeutic exercises, balance or coordination activities, and other supportive therapies when clinically appropriate.
Not every patient needs the same treatment. In addition, not every patient responds in exactly the same way.
That individual variation matters. Our goal is to choose care based on what we find during your examination, measure how you respond, and modify care when appropriate.
What If I’m Not Sure Whether Chiropractic Can Help?
You do not need to diagnose yourself before making an appointment.
If pain, stiffness, restricted movement, an injury, or another health concern has you wondering whether chiropractic care might be appropriate, an examination can help determine whether there is a musculoskeletal component that falls within our scope of care.
If your examination suggests that your condition requires evaluation or treatment outside our office, we will tell you.
At Quality Care Chiropractic, our goal is not to claim that chiropractic care treats everything. It is to understand the person in front of us, determine where chiropractic care may appropriately contribute, and help that person function as well as possible.
That’s why we Listen • Evaluate • Explain • Care.
Wondering whether your condition is something chiropractic care may help with? Contact Quality Care Chiropractic to schedule an examination.
This article is part of the Quality Care Chiropractic FAQ series. Visit the Quality Care Chiropractic Education Center to explore more answers to common questions about chiropractic care and what to expect at our office.
Quality Care Chiropractic PLLC
Where Quality of Life Means Everything.
