Dating back to the time of the Ancient Egyptians chiropractic has been a chosen method of relief for patients. Modern day chiropractic as we know is thought to have begun in 1895 with the reported restoration of the hearing of a deaf man completed when a mere apprentice of magnetic healing, Daniel David Palmer, adjusted his misaligned vertebrae. Modern chiropractic is founded upon the principles of Palmer that he taught in his school, which focused on the misalignment of vertebrae. Palmer believed that when not properly treated the pinched nerves were responsible for the other illness which people suffered.
The basic principle of chiropractic care is to locate vertebrae in the spine that are not moving properly. Once a chiropractor locates the misaligned vertebrae, they then manipulate and adjust them back into proper position to relieve pressure from the joints, nerves and muscles. Manipulations, done by adding force in a specific manner to the affected area carried out with various methods and techniques depending on the person and health issue at hand.
The dozens of techniques and methods used by chiropractors can vary greatly in their principal of approach and tools used. Traditionally chiropractic medicine was only carried out using the hands to apply pressure to affected areas but many modern techniques use tools such as activators to apply pressure. Tools like an activator allow the chiropractor to apply a quick forceful pressure that could not be accomplished with an adjustment done by the hands. Likewise, the traditional method of adjusting with the hands allows a chiropractor to apply a slow and constant pressure when needed.
While the American Medical Association has highly refuted the effectiveness of chiropractic care in the past their disputes were overruled by the Supreme Court in 1990 when they ruled that "chiropractors are particularly effective in relieving long term chronic and severe pain syndromes, headaches, and stress and strain problems associated with pregnancy." Chiropractic care has proven effective in relieving pain associated with acute, chronic and general low-back pain, neck pain, headaches, carpel tunnel syndrome, Fibromyalgia and infantile colic. Chiropractic care was stated to be an effective tool in the rehabilitation process for some patients by researchers Triano, McGregor, and Skogsbergh in 1997.
The effectiveness of the chiropractic method should not come as a surprise though since a chiropractor goes through a more rigorous educational program than traditional medical school that requires 220 more hours of basic sciences courses and 155 more contact hours. Contrary to the belief that all chiropractors are simply quacks that do not have a license to practice medicine they are required to pass a series of national boards and a licensing exam. Many states even require a chiropractor to seek out continuing education courses to be eligible for license renewal each year. Most chiropractors have gone through a total of 11 years of education before they practice including 4 years of medical curriculum, 4 years of chiropractic curriculum and an additional 3 years of physical therapy curriculum making the health program one of the most rigorous in the profession.
Beyond the educational experience, many find it confusing as to what to look for when choosing a good chiropractor. General good qualities to look for when seeking chiropractic care include accreditation by the National Association for Chiropractic Medicine and a recommendation from your medical doctor. If a chiropractic office insist on signing a contract for long term treatment it may be best to explore other options. In addition, if the chiropractor advertises any treatments beyond chiropractic care such as dietary supplements or homeopathic treatments, you may want to check their credentials thoroughly to verify they have obtained the proper training and certification or licensing to offer these treatments.
References:
FAQs. (n.d.) Clear Purpose Chiropractics. Retrieved from http://clearpurpose.net/?page_id=6
The Effectiveness of Chiropractic Care. (2000) Studies on Chiropractic 2000 National Board of Chiropractic Examiners. Retrieved from http://www.chiro.org/LINKS/FULL/Studies_Supporting_C hiropractic.shtml
Chiropractic Education (n.d.) American Chiropractic Association. Retrieved from http://www.acatoday.org/level2_css.cfm?T1ID=13&T2ID=66
Chiropractic Education (n.d.) Chiropractic Research. Retrieved from http://www.chiropracticresearch.org/NEWSchiroeduacti on.htm
Chiropractic Techniques. (September 24, 2004) Chirobase. Retrieved from http://www.chirobase.org/09Links/chirotech.html
The Safety of Chiropractic. Frank M. Painter, D.C. (n.d.) ChiroZINE. Retrieved from http://www.chiro.org/LINKS/Safety.shtml
Chiropractic(What you should know). Doctors Corner INternet Group, Inc. (March 14, 2005) Doctors Corner. Retrieved from http://your-doctor.com/patient_info/alternative_reme dies/various_therapy/chiropractic.html