Why It’s Important to Identify the Cause
Hi, guys. Dr. Stephen Kosterman here at Kosterman Chiropractic Center in Cary.
In this video series, we’re talking a lot about neck pain. We have a lot of patients who see us for neck pain, and I’m guessing that you or someone you love has suffered with neck pain.
It’s very important when addressing someone with neck pain to find out exactly what’s causing it. If you can find out what’s causing it, then you can tailor your treatment to fix the problem correctly and efficiently.
The Consultation and Chiropractic Exam
In our office, the way that we address it is, first, we sit down and have a thorough consultation to find out exactly what’s going on. What’s been going on? Was there an injury? What makes it worse? What makes it better? Have you seen anyone for it?
After that detailed consultation and history, we’re going to do what’s called a chiropractic exam, where we’re going to get hands-on and feel all those individual vertebrae. We’ll find out if something is out of alignment and find out if you’re in the right place.
We’ll go through some orthopedic and range-of-motion tests, see how well you can move, see how well you can’t move, and see where it’s restricted. We’ll also do some orthopedic tests to further pinpoint exactly where it’s coming from—all with the goal in mind of finding out exactly what is causing the problem.
Three Main Causes of Neck Pain
There are usually three main things that are driving it.
A Vertebra That Is Out of Alignment
One of them can simply be a vertebra that’s out of alignment. The vertebrae should be in a specific alignment. Sometimes they’ll shift out of alignment and start to pinch and irritate the ligaments, tendons, muscles, and nerves around those vertebrae, right?
A Disc Herniation or Disc Bulge
Another thing that can drive it is what’s called a disc herniation or a disc bulge, where that disc will actually push out and irritate the nerve.
There’s a very special approach that comes along with this as well. We want to reduce this disc herniation off that nerve so that it can heal.
Bone Spurs or Arthritis
Another thing that can cause it—if you’ll notice before I get to what I’m going to show you—is this is normal, right? Normal bone, normal bone, a perfect disc, and a big space for that nerve back there.
What can be driving it is bone spurring or arthritis over time. If you’ve had damage in your spine over time, it usually gets worse, much like a cavity in your teeth.
Those bone spurs can shut off these nerve holes, and you have to be very delicate and specific to get the spine moving and get the pressure off of it again.
Tailoring the Treatment to the Problem
It’s very important to find out what’s causing it so you can tailor the treatment for it. Then you can get the individual healthy and keep them functioning at their best. I always say, until they’re 100 years old.
Thanks for listening. I hope this was educational for you. Don’t ever hesitate to give us a call. We’re the best in town. We’d love to take care of you as well.
