All doctors use a standard procedure of examination to diagnosis a patient’s condition in order to arrive at a plan of treatment. Chiropractor uses the same time-honored methods of consultation, case history, physical examination (including neurological and orthopedic exam), laboratory analysis, X-ray and MRI examination.

In addition, chiropractor provides a careful chiropractic structural examination, with emphasis on the spine. The examination of your spine to evaluate structure and function is what makes chiropractic different from other health care procedures.

The most common therapeutic procedure performed by doctors of chiropractic is known as “spinal manipulation,” also called “chiropractic adjustment.”

The purpose of manipulation is to restore joint mobility by manually applying a controlled force into joints that have become hypomobile – or restricted in their movement – as a result of a tissue injury. Tissue injury can be caused by a single traumatic event, such as improper lifting of a heavy object, or through repetitive stresses, such as sitting in an awkward position with poor spinal posture for an extended period of time. In either case, injured tissues undergo physical and chemical changes that can cause inflammation, pain, and diminished function for the sufferer. Manipulation, or adjustment of the affected joint and tissues, restores mobility, thereby alleviating pain and muscle tightness, and allowing tissues to heal.

Chiropractors have broad diagnostic skills and are also trained to recommend therapeutic and rehabilitative exercises, as well as to provide nutritional, dietary and lifestyle counseling.