Chiropractic

The Chiropractic was invented by the Canadian David Palmer, who tried in the 19th century to correct displacements in the joints using a special grip technique. Chiropractic is a form of manual therapy that doctors and non-medical practitioners can now learn in additional training. Many orthopedic surgeons have additional training in chiropractic therapy, which complements the current manual orthopedic therapy, although it has not yet been scientifically established whether the claims made by chiropractic that misalignments of the joints and the spine actually have a feedback effect on the organs corresponds to the truth.

What is Chiropractic?

Chiropractic is a form of manual therapy that doctors and non-medical practitioners can now learn in additional training.

Manual treatments of the spine and joints were already carried out in ancient Egypt and in ancient Greece. The Chiropractic got its name from the Canadian David Palmer (1845-1913), who originally probably learned the method from Jim Atkinson from Davenport, Iowa.

The term chiropractic is derived from the Greek and has the original meaning "to do by hand". In orthopedics, manual therapies have always been used to compensate for the attempted misalignment of the movement and holding apparatus using special grip techniques.

David Palmer, on the other hand, was the first to market chiropractic in a form that claimed that non-othopedic diseases could also be caused by these misalignments and could be corrected through chiropractic treatment.

In Germany, chiropractic can be performed by naturopaths and doctors with additional training in chiropractic therapy.

Function, effect, treatments & goals

The Chiropractic primarily for functional joint problems in the spinal column. Displaced vertebrae due to tension or muscle spasms can on the one hand limit the mobility of the spine and on the other hand be responsible for back pain by pressing on nerves or even pinching them. The cause of this tension is often incorrect movement sequences or swelling and inflammation in the area of ​​the connective tissue.

Before the actual manual treatment, the therapist takes an anamnesis. The patient is questioned in detail and then subjected to a physical examination, for which the patient usually has to undress. The entire movement and holding apparatus is observed and examined while standing, walking and lying down, as misalignments of individual joints can often have their cause in other parts of the body.

The chiropractor then tries to release the blockages in the area of ​​the joints using special manipulation techniques. Often this happens with a jerky movement, which leads to the typical cracking noise, which is however often misinterpreted. The cracking is caused by the collapse of small gas bubbles that have formed in the synovial fluid due to the misalignment and is completely harmless.

The techniques used by chiropractic practitioners vary and are often dependent on the chiropractor's empathy and his ability to position the surfaces of the joints in such a way that they can slide back into the correct position.

The treatment is not always carried out jerkily, but can also be carried out gently and through repeated stretching. Basically, these two techniques are differentiated from each other in chiropractic. The slow method is called mobilizing, the jerky method is the manipulative.

The manipulative technique is said to be able to restore the mobility of joints more quickly and to a more complete extent. It is up to the chiropractic user which of the techniques is used.

In addition, other techniques are used, all of which aim to relieve the joints and ligaments, as well as the spinal nerves, and thereby get the joint back into its original position.

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Risks, side effects & dangers

Before starting a chiropractic treatment, an imaging procedure, such as a CT scan, an MRI or a simple X-ray examination, should always be used to determine whether something speaks against treatment.

Contraindications can be tumors or a herniated disc, as well as problems in the area of ​​the carotid artery, which could lead to injury. In rare cases, blood clots can develop in this way, which could subsequently trigger a stroke by blocking a vessel in the brain.

Nerve damage can also occur as a result of improper use of chiropractic, which can be expressed by a changed feeling or by paralysis.

In general, it can be said that complications in chiropractic are extremely rare if the method is carried out by a trained chiropractor and possible risk factors are excluded in advance.