Chiropractic management of headache and neck pain is something that we specalize in. The two conditions usually co occur and are the msot common reasons for chiropractic visits. This means it is important to determine if a patient’s headaches and neck pain are related or if the issues need to be handled separately. Let’s go through the process of what you can expect from chiropractic management of headache and neck pain.
We will begin with a past history which includes:
1) prior injuries or accidents
2) family history, social history (including education level and occupation, sleep habits, tobacco/alcohol use, and more)
3) allergy history
4) vaccination history
5) current medication use to identify potential side effects
6) review of your systems (cardiovascular, respiratory, ears/nose/throat, genito-urinary, and more).
Then, we will look at each present complaint individually to determine onset, palliative, and provoking positions/activities/situations, quality of symptoms, radiation and location of complaints, severity of complaints (pain—right now, on average, at best and at worst), and timing (better in the morning or night, work-relatedness, hormonal shifts, or patterns).
Then we will conduct an examination.
This may include:
- Taking vitals (blood pressure, pulse, respirations, height, weight, temperature)
- Observation of posture, gait, movement, affect
- Facial grimace
- Palpation of muscles, trigger points, joint noise (crepitation), warmth
- Orthopedic tests that provoke an increase and/or decrease in pain/symptoms
- Neurological tests
- Consideration for special tests like x-ray, blood tests, or specialty evaluation
From this information, we will diagnose you and create a treatment plan. Some common treatments for chiropractic managment of headache andneck pain include: manual therapies such as spinal manipulation (thrust and non-thrust types); mobilization (stretch-type); “drop table” methods; manual traction, trigger point, and other “soft-tissue” techniques; and modalities such as vibration, ice/heat, electric stim, ultrasound, and more.
We may even recommend more at home strategies such as exercise training, posture retraining, nutritional recommendations and activity modifications.
Come see us today to receive chiropractic management of your headache and neck pain or schedule online here.
