Spinal Joint Dysfunction

What causes spinal joint dysfunction?

Spinal joints that become jammed, locked-up, or lose their normal motion, termed spinal joint dysfunction or vertebral subluxation, can effect the function of the spine and nervous system. Spinal joint dysfunction results in symptoms such as pain, muscle spasm, weakness, numbness, tingling and reduced body function.

Spinal Joint dysfunction is very common and does not always produce pain or other obvious symptoms. It can be caused in a number of ways:

1. Physical eg. Injuries, falls, trauma, car-accidents, poor posture, incorrect lifting, prolonged sitting or standing, repetitive strain/ over-use, lack of rest or exercise, occupational hazards etc.
2. Chemical eg. Toxins derived from a bad diet (sugar, food colouring, additives etc.), tobacco, coffee, alcohol, hormonal imbalance, pollution etc.
3. Emotional eg. Work stress, relationship stress, anxiety, grief etc.

How can chiropractic help?

Chiropractors specialize in the detection of spinal joint dysfunction and correct it by applying a very specific and controlled force, called a spinal manipulation or spinal adjustment. This helps to release fixation and restore mobility to spinal joints and soft-tissues, and modulate pain signals through the nervous system. An adjustment or manipulation can also be applied to the joints of the arms or legs.

Chiropractors take a "holistic" approach to treating the patient, recognising that if there is dysfunction in one part of the body a "chain-reaction" can occur where other areas of the body compensate. They appreciate that the area of the symptom does not always correlate with the area of the problem, and thus look at the body as a whole when diagnosing a patient's complaint.

What other treatments techniques do chiropractors use?

To complement spinal adjustments or spinal manipulation and to treat sports injuries and extremity complaints, the chiropractors at Rowville Chiro & Physio use a range of other treatment techniques including:

• Joint Mobilisation
• Dry Needling or Acupuncture
• Massage/ Soft-tissue therapy
• Manual traction
• Mechanically assisted techniques ie. Blocking, drop-piece and Activator
• Muscle stretching techniques ie. PNF and PIR
• Sports taping
• Physiological therapeutic modalities ie. Ultrasound and Interferential Current
• Rehabilitative exercises, patient education and dietary advice

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