4-MINUTE READ
NECK AND BACK PAIN
As a Gonstead chiropractor I treat patients daily who suffer with neck and back pain. The cause of their pain can be caused by a range of issues. From the more severe cases like a spinal disc injury to a sprained joint or strained muscle.
The spine is made up of 24 moveable vertebrae. When the vertebrae (bones I the spine) are in a proper alignment they protect the nerve system. The fact that they can move allows us to bend, twist and be athletic. At the same time their ability to move leaves the vulnerable to shifting and getting stuck out of proper alignment. When this happens the vertebrae cause the nerves to become obstructed, causing pain & other symptoms.
THE SPINAL COLUMN
The joints in the spine are connected by a ligament called a spinal disc. The disc acts like a spacer that maintains an opening for nerves to exit the spine and connect (like electrical wires) to other tissues and organs in the body. When proper signals sent from the brain, through the nerves to the body, the body functions optimally. But when the signal is obstructed the body cannot function properly and over time pain & symptoms show up.
HERE ARE FIVE REASONS WHY GOOD CHIROPRACTORS USE XRAY
1. You need quality information to make a quality decision about your health. Just like with Covid-19, testing allows us to make better health decisions. When it comes to chiropractic and the health of your spine, your chiropractor should use objective tests to make the best care recommendations for you. Taking a full spine Xray or at the very least, an Xray of the symptomatic area, will give your chiropractor quality information so he or she can give you quality care recommendations.
2. Xray is the best way to tell if you have osteoarthritis. Nobody has Xray vision so a chiropractor who tells you that you do or don’t have osteoarthritis without taking an Xray is guessing. I don’t know about you but I don’t want anybody guessing with my health. Knowing with certainty that you do or do not have osteoarthritis will directly impact the recommendations from a good chiropractor.

FULL SPINE XRAY
3. The third reason a good chiropractor takes Xray’s is for his or her patients to have a better understanding of what is going on with their body. Again, quality information will give you more certainty about what is causing the symptoms that you have been dealing with. Not only that but when you see what the cause is and understand how the care recommendations will help you get from where you are today to where you want to be, you will be more likely to follow through with your doctors recommendations.
4. Xrays help your chiropractor deliver the best adjustment he or she can. Since the doctor knows exactly how your spine has shifted he or she will be able to deliver a specific adjustment for your spine rather than the same adjustment the everyone else is getting. Also, since the spine is a kinetic chain, a change in one area will effect other areas of the spine. I like to say for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Xrays help chiropractor know how a local change will have a global effect on your spine.
5. The fifth reason good chiropractors use Xray is to have objective measurements for pre and post care corrections. The goal of a good chiropractor is to make a long-term structural correction of the spine. This way you don’t continue dealing with the same issues that come & go every week or two. Full spine Xrays pre and post a corrective phase of care will show you that your spine has changed and that the change is long lasting.Movement for the body & spine
GONSTEAD CHIROPRACTIC
As a Gonstead Chiropractor in Denver, I use an objective measurement to find structural shifts in the spine as well as nerve irritation. My goal is to make a long-term correction of the spine back within a normal functional range. This is very similar to how an orthodontist corrects the alignment of teeth.
We use objective indicators such as nervoscope, posture analysis & Xray to identify structural shifts of the spine. This is similarly to how an engineer assessing the structural integrity of a building. I pair the information that we find to create a well-rounded care plan to help patients get from where they are to where they want to be.