Spinal traction is a type of decompression therapy meant to review your spine of pressure. It reduces pressure from compressed discs by stretching the spine. The stretches straighten your spine and help you heal faster.
Who Is a Good Candidate for Spinal Traction?
Your doctor or chiropractor could recommend spinal traction for conditions like:
- Bone spurs
- Facet disease
- Herniated disc
- Slipped disc
- Degenerative disc disease
- Sciatica
- Pinched nerves
- Foraminal stenosis
It would be best to avoid spinal traction if you have some types of cancer, arthritis, cervical rheumatoid, tumor, and osteoporosis.
There are two main ways that a chiropractor can administer spinal traction. They include:
Manual Spinal Traction
Manual spinal traction refers to the use of hands to administer therapy. A physical therapist or chiropractor will put you in a state of traction using manual force on your muscles and joints. The force helps to increase the space between the vertebrae.
Mechanical Spinal Traction
Mechanical spinal traction involves the use of special tools to administer spinal traction therapy. The tools will stretch your spine as you lie on a table. They include a series of ropes, pulleys, and slings.
What Are the Different Techniques of Spinal Traction?
Whether you are getting a manual or mechanical traction, they will be applied in various techniques depending on your situation. These techniques include:
- Static or sustained traction: A chiropractor will apply at the amount of traction for a few minutes. Then couple it equally with stronger Force.
- Continuous traction: continuous spinal traction uses small amounts of weight 2 apply traction for several hours. It is uncomfortable because of the lengthy time and patients tend to become uncomfortable due to the weights or force.
- Positional traction: positional traction seeks to exact longitudinal Force on your spinal structures.
- Intermittent mechanical traction: Intermittent mechanical traction uses a mechanical device to alternatively apply and withdraw traction on your spinal structures.
There are other techniques a chiropractor or physical therapist may use to apply spinal traction. The technique depends on your individual needs for Recovery.
You should also know that spinal traction can be done on different parts of the spine. It includes cervical traction and lumbar traction. Cervical traction deals with the cervical vertebrae which are the bones around your neck. It helps to alleviate neck pain. On the other hand, lumbar traction deals with the lumbar vertebrae which are the spinal bones on your back. It helps to alleviate back pain.
Get Chiropractic Spinal Traction From our Chiropractor in Jacksonville, NC
Jacksonville Chiropractic and Auto Injury Clinic offers various services including whiplash treatments for laser therapy spinal decompression lower back pain treatment, and more. Contact us today at (910)455-6696 to get a chiropractic treatment that suits your needs.