January 31, 2018
Pregnancy can be an incredibly scary time for the women and families involved. They are constantly surrounded by a million different opinions and expectations about how to carry and care for the child within them. As chiropractors, it is both a responsibility and a privilege to care for increasing numbers of pregnant women as more and more of them seek us out as part of their pregnancy plan. This article will explore some new research around the possible benefits of chiropractic care for pregnant women and offer a brief review of the broader picture of chiropractic care in this area. […]
January 25, 2018
Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) is an indispensable tool in the monitoring and management of patients with inflammatory and autoimmune conditions, as well as patients recovering from injury or surgery. The VLA Quadscan provides you with a deeper insight into your patients’ health, allowing you to closely monitor their treatment progress, and provide tangible results for patients, significantly enhancing compliance. The Process and Purpose of Inflammation Acute inflammation evolved to be a protective process, to overcome a short-lived threat, such as an injury, with the function to restore tissue homeostasis. Unfortunately, the majority of the inflammation affecting patients in many clinics, […]
January 23, 2018
Over the last few decades the incidence of postural kyphosis has noticeably increased in proportion to our increasingly sedentary modern lifestyle. We sit all day at computers, lean over our phones and we lay with our chin on our chests as we work through an entire Netflix series in a weekend. It has been suggested historically that a kyphotic cervical spine is a “normal variant” in human posture. This appears to be an incorrect but worrying myth. Drs. Harrison and Haas reviewed some of the papers in which this claim is made in their 2002 work, CBP Structural Rehabilitation of […]
December 5, 2017
Inflammation Damages Lives Chronic inflammatory conditions are one of the most common presentations that Practitioners see in clinic. Whether it be autoimmune (AI) conditions such as systemic lupus erythematosus and rheumatoid arthritis (RA); degenerative conditions such as osteoarthritis (OA); or injury resulting in chronic pain and inflammation, the pain and discomfort caused by chronic inflammatory conditions can significantly impact a patient’s quality of life, interfering with social activities, sleep efficiency, occupation choices and daily activities that are taken for granted by the wider community. Recently, Health World conducted a research clinic to successfully demonstrate the effectiveness of natural treatment prescriptions […]
November 29, 2017
Living bodies are dynamic, open loop systems with definite boundaries that are characterised by a stable form and structure. The continued preservation of that form and structure requires millions of adaptive processes every second in a constantly changing interaction between the system and it’s shifting environment. Early models of this concept were described in the beginning of the 20th century by Walter Cannon as homeostasis. He conceptualised these processes as occurring locally and independently of the central nervous system and proposed a series of independent physiological systems that worked together in an effort to re-establish the conditions of the body […]
November 13, 2017
Subclinical neck pain: it might be thought of as a relatively innocuous issue that many people would simply pop a pill for. Many a person may even skip a visit to the local chiropractor until it gets much more severe than the mild neck pain, ache or stiffness that makes up the condition. It is becoming increasingly obvious that pain isn’t the whole reach of the problem though. Recent studies indicate that subclinical neck pain can influence joint position sense (proprioception in upper limbs), cortical and cerebellar motor processing, and mental response times for complex rotation tasks. Best of all, […]
November 8, 2017
A common inclusion in many chiropractic protocols is the leg length inequality assessment. In fact, it would be a rare chiropractor that hasn’t performed them in his/her time in practice. A recent paper published in the Journal of Chiropractic Medicine has compared two approaches to this task and emerged with results that should be enlightening, perhaps even surprising. The study had a simple aim: to determine the reliability of supine and prone leg length inequality (LLI) assessments. The researchers were also interested in whether the confidence of the examiner played a role in the agreement of the methods. As […]
November 6, 2017
As our patients become older, the wear and tear on their joints begins to take its toll. As joint degeneration progresses, their lives may become restricted to activities which do not cause them pain, and this may limit their ability to exercise. Helping our patients to live the best quality of life possible, to help them to live as independently as possible and play with their grandchildren in the park, is the most motivating goal we can hope to achieve. Providing support to reduce chronic pain and manage joint dysfunction and repair of age-related joint injuries with proven clinical efficacy […]
October 31, 2017
In years gone by, forward head posture was thought to be something brought on by age as older adults gave in to gravity, which increased the cervical hyperkyphosis. Since the era of social media and mobile devices hit its peak, we are now seeing forward head posture emerge in even the young. Still, science has something to reveal about the effects of forward head posture and it’s not something any chiropractor or manual therapist should ignore. Why Does Forward Head Posture And Cervical Kyphosis Matter? Through the years, history has held that proper posture is a “state of musculoskeletal balance […]
October 24, 2017
In our current series, we are examining the evidence behind chiropractic and the senses. From proprioception (our sense of where we are in space), to the more commonly known senses including touch, hearing, and smell. Though we lack RCT’s looking into chiropractic care and each of these, case report data (among other research or hypothesis work) does indicate that restoring optimal function to the nervous system can impact these areas in some cases. Of course, we need to be careful what we claim as we wait the RCT work to confirm and establish the data, but the indications are positive. […]
October 18, 2017
Following part one of our series on chiropractic care and the senses, we are now putting the first of the big five on the agenda: hearing. In the part one, we talked about proprioception – our sense of where we are in space. While its obvious that all the senses work together to give us information about our surroundings, thus all having at least some bearing on proprioception, the sense of hearing also serves a distinct function. Where it all started A quick look into the history books shows what started our profession: a janitor by the name of William […]
October 11, 2017
Inflammation – the Link to All Disease There is no doubt that inflammation is the underlying driver that touches the most number of patients. Every pathological condition in existence, whether it be a joint condition, mood disorders, cardiovascular disease or cancer holds some sort of inflammatory link. These days, all too many patients report chronic pain syndromes as a consequence of uncontrolled inflammation which can be ruling and ruining their lives. Imagine joints so painful you can’t do simply daily tasks such as combing your hair, picking up your newborn baby or carrying a bag of groceries. We are all […]
October 11, 2017
In days gone by, the strongest evidence surrounding chiropractic pertained only to lower back pain or the realms of musculoskeletal complaints. While that might be the definition that the uninformed still hold us to, it’s no longer solely what the evidence illustrates. We are now seeing increasing evidence that chiropractic care can change the structure and function of the brain, offer positive impacts well beyond the realm of musculoskeletal complaints and improve multiple aspects of quality of . In this series we will be shining a little light on how chiropractic can impact the six senses. Before you go thinking the Australian Spinal […]
October 4, 2017
It’s a common, yet misguided, assumption often repeated around the traps: that chiropractic isn’t an evidence-based profession or that it is somehow at odds with traditional medicine. Whilst the former is categorically untrue (just ask the university students who spend thousands of study hours immersed in the evidence), the latter is like comparing apples and oranges. One stream looks at treating problems once they arise. The other looks at protecting, preserving and enhancing nervous system function. Every now and then, a piece of work pops up in a peer-reviewed journal that shows us the two streams aren’t completely at odds. […]
September 29, 2017
Traditionally, chiropractic has been built on a model of segmental subluxation assessment and correction with local impacts and views of possible global affects on the central nervous system and overall health. The structural or biomechanical paradigm of segmental subluxation assessment is not without its challenges. For example, why do assessment findings often poorly correlate with pain and dysfunction? Why are there many patients with damage to musculoskeletal structures but are asymptomatic? Why do some people heal quickly with acute injury, whilst others develop chronic pain and neuromusculoskeletal injury? Finally, why do many patients have persistent sensory abnormalities1-5, like chronic pain, […]
September 21, 2017
Fibromyalgia is widely viewed as a pain syndrome with an unknown cause. To some practitioners, it is a bona fide medical condition. To others, it’s merely psychosomatic. Sufferers will tell you a common truth though: it can be debilitating, distressing, and it’s very, very real. Sadly, the issue of how to treat this pain syndrome is no more straight-forward than finding its cause. Cognitive behavioural therapy, low-dose anti-depressants and mild exercise are often prescribed but “there is no permanent change associated with this form of treatment [1].” This often leaves sufferers feeling frustrated at the apparent permanence of their predicament. […]