What Do Chiropractors Treat?
In short, a great chiropractor can assess and treat anything on your body that moves! If theres a muscle, joint, nerve around your area of complaint, a chiropractor is qualified to assess and treat it with conservative, non-surgical methods including dry needling, adjustments, mobilization or strengthening exercises, hands-on therapies, and high-tech therapeutic devices like class-4 laser and shockwave therapy in order to facilitate healing, decrease your pain and increase your functional abilities!
The chiropractors “bread and butter” is obviously complaints of the spine like neck, mid-back, and low back pain but we also regularly treat things like shoulder, hip, wrist, elbow, knee and ankle pain of the limbs as well. Chiropractors can even help with things like TMJ or jaw pain issues because the jaw is technically a joint, is surrounded by muscles, and has intimate ties to the function and movement of the upper neck!
The other great news about seeking care from a good chiropractor first is that they are a fantastic resource for (non-emergency) triage. A provider should be able to recognize yellow/red flags that may indicate that a particular patient’s issues are beyond their scope, and make an appropriate recommendation or referral to someone who is better suited to help you if needed.
Here are a few other things that you may not think of that a chiropractor is well-suited to treat! 👇🏼
sciatica or radiating symptoms ⚡️ from your low back down your leg
carpal tunnel syndrome ⌨️
tendonitis and other inflammatory tendon issues (golfers/tennis elbow, runners knee, IT Band syndrome)
sprained ankles
headaches and migraines
plantar fasciitis, shin splits, or other running injuries 🏃🏽
muscle strains or pulls
This is hardly an exhaustive list of all the things a chiropractor could help with, if your wondering if your local chiropractor can help with your particular issue, its best to set up a consultation phone call or visit so they can quickly assess whether youre someone they may be able to help or not. Great chiropractors using comprehensive care should be one of the first places to turn for triage, diagnosis and treatment of neuromusculoskeletal (nerves, muscles, bones, joints) aches and pains anywhere throughout your body, not just your spine!