Have been asked why you see a chiropractor? Have you asked a Richmond chiropractic patient friend why he or she visits Johnson Chiropractic? It’s a logical inquiry. Well, Johnson Chiropractic shares here some valid points of recent research outcomes to help answer those questions of why see a chiropractor for spine pain.

First, a study of patients going to the hospital for acute low back pain had severe pain, disability and difficulty in communicating their illness experience. These patients found that they were required to navigate a system they did not understand, interacting with healthcare workers who seemed to operate independently rather than as a team. Suggestions for acute low back pain management guidelines were made: develop summaries for patients that include how to communicate with the hospital structure and explain who does what and ensure that all members of treating teams are aware of these guidelines so that everyone uses them.. (1) Richmond back pain patients can avoid this confused treatment approach by seeing the trained chiropractor at Johnson Chiropractic, the doctor who is the Richmond back pain specialist in understanding the mechanism of back pain, how to diagnose the cause, and most importantly how to treat it without surgery. The Richmond doctor of chiropractic is trained for spine pain treatment. Go to the best Richmond back pain specialist and avoid the confusion of hospital protocols.

Next, realize that over 80% of us will have spine pain in our lives and some of us throughout life. Realize that the intervertebral disc in your spine is the most pain producing structure in the spine and that disc degeneration starts in the second decade of life. Is that surprising? It is to many Richmond patients. It stresses the importance of humans to start spine care in their teens so as to avoid or diminish spine pain later in life. That involves proper use of the spine to avoid injury, nutrition to maintain the nutrients for disc health, and spinal manipulation for some spine conditions. All this helps to minimize or avoid spine pain later in life. Always remember that as the discs in the spine lose height due to degeneration, there is impaction of load forces on other spine structures that start the pain process of degeneration. Avoid this with sound chiropractic advice and treatment. (2) Start at Johnson Chiropractic.

Now, concerning nutrition of the intervertebral disc, remember also that intervertebral disc degeneration includes death of disc cells in response to nutrient deprivation and multiple stresses. (3) Your Richmond chiropractor will coach and instruct you in the nutrition benefits of avoiding disc degeneration.

Regarding back surgery, like it or not, surgical outcomes are influenced by your body weight. Greater body mass index (BMI) (overweight) is an independent risk factor for undergoing a revision procedure following spine surgery.  Patients with greater BMI undergoing spine surgery should be informed they could have an elevated risk for revision procedures. (4) Think about this - chiropractors including yours at Johnson Chiropractic are trained to condition the body, that is strengthen body muscle and lose weight in addition to providing necessary spinal manipulation and advice on nutrition. Keep in mind that while under Richmond chiropractic care, your BMI may reduce. Richmond chiropractic care can give you relief without surgery by treating you as a whole person.

Finally, it will amaze you to learn that a study comparing conservative, non-surgical treatment of spinal stenosis (which causes often severe low back and leg pain) shows no difference in pain relief between surgery versus bracing and exercise. It also showed that spinal injections gave better physical function than surgery while better pain relief was with surgery at six weeks. In the conclusion of this study, a high rate of adverse side effects ranging from 10% to 24% was reported following surgery. No side effects were reported for any of the conservative treatment options. In the end, no conclusion could be made as to whether surgery or non-surgical care was best. (5) Your Richmond chiropractor thinks non-surgical and no side effects are big deals though! Our gentle care with Cox Technic protocols is non-surgical and comforting.

So be informed. Be ready to answer the question “why do you go to Johnson Chiropractic for back pain care?” For streamlined professional care of your spine pain, consult the doctor specialized in the problem, your Richmond chiropractor at Johnson Chiropractic. Make your Richmond chiropractor the leader in your spine care. Contact Johnson Chiropractic today.