Adjustments and Manipulation

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A chiropractic adjustment, also known as chiropractic manipulation, manual manipulation, or spinal manipulation, is the primary chiropractic treatment method for back pain.

Spinal manipulation relieves pressure on joints, reduces inflammation, and improves nerve function. It has been a trusted form of treatment since the ancient Greek Hippocrates documented manipulative techniques in his writings back in 1500 B.C. Today, spinal manipulation is used to treat conditions such as allergies, menstrual cramps and headaches.

How Does Spinal Manipulation Work?

There are well over 100 types of adjustment techniques used by chiropractors throughout the world. Some practitioners may use force and twisting, while other techniques are more gentle. Regardless of how they are performed, these techniques are intended to restore or enhance joint function with the objectives of reducing pain and resolving joint inflammation.

When vertebrae become misaligned, there is an overall systemic response from the muscular system to the central nervous system. Without proper alignment and flow, our nerves, our immune system, and our minds cannot function at their highest peak.

Overall, spinal adjustments and manipulations are an excellent way to keep the body functioning at its highest level without any discomfort. When the body is adequately aligned, it becomes able to respond and perform as it was built to do.

What is Instrument Adjusting?

High velocity, low amplitude (HVLA) adjustments are a common form of chiropractic manipulation. Although chiropractic adjustments are usually carried out by hand, instrument adjusting has become an increasingly popular method of manipulation in chiropractic treatment. In fact, instrument adjusting is now the most commonly used chiropractic technique after manual spinal manipulation. A wide variety of professional adjustment instruments are available on the market, ranging from mechanical spring-loaded models to high-tech, electrically powered brands. These are held by hand to administer force to the precise area of treatment.

Chiropractic adjustment instruments are designed to provide fast and targeted adjustments to a patient at around 100 times the speed of a manual adjustment. Whereas manual adjustment will vary depending on the precise force of the practitioner, adjustment instruments can be set to deliver the same impact on each adjustment. Further, the small tip of adjustment instruments can be targeted much more precisely than human hands. In addition to these advantages, adjustment instruments do not cause the popping and cracking sounds that typically accompany manual manipulation, which makes them particularly useful when treating nervous patients such as children and seniors.

Being treated with an adjustment instrument has been described as feeling like a light tapping on the treated area. The treatment is usually painless, and patients often report reduced pain and greater mobility following adjustment. There is also evidence to suggest that instrument adjusting may lead to fewer painful side-effects than manual manipulation. The precision of adjustment instruments can be used to move spinal vertebrae without disturbing adjacent muscles, which results in less pain for the patient.

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