Chiropractors can help you to realign displaced vertebrae by manipulation of the spine. There are many schools of thought and techniques in chiropractic medicine, and sometimes it's difficult to choose the right one.
The Thompson Technique focuses on manipulating the leg joints for the correction of misalignments in the lower back area, around the pelvis and the spine. In use for several decades, the Thompson Technique has demonstrated great success, particularly in resolving issues associated with back pain. The effectiveness of this technique is due to the precise nature of its adjustments for spinal and postural problems.
With the Thompson Technique, the first step of the treatment process is to analyze the length of the legs. By extending your legs on a table, your chiropractor can assess whether your legs are out of balance or not. This assessment may involve flexing and extending the legs to see if one is shorter than the other, and how this may affect your health. Often, the legs are not in balance, and this can be due to misalignments in the pelvic area, which affect how the body is positioned over the feet. Such misalignments can contribute significantly to muscle and joint pain, stress and even general health issues.
Your chiropractor may also request X-rays and conduct additional tests such as range of motion tests and manual palpation of the joints.
After the initial leg length analysis and any complementary examinations, the chiropractor can diagnose the type of misalignment, whether it's cervical, in the pelvis or in other parts of the spine. Once the problem area is determined, the chiropractor adjusts the legs using a special chiropractic drop table and a combination of manipulation and thrusts with varying pressure on the joints. The drop table has sections that "fall away" as the thrusts are applied, allowing your body weight to contribute to the adjustment process on specific joints or vertebrae.
Thompson Technique adjustments are carried out manually and may be seem more forceful to patients than other techniques. This is because the Thompson Technique is one of several Activator Methods, in which an activator device such as a mallet is used during the manipulation for extra accuracy and precision. Occasionally, due to the enhanced force induced by the mallet, the drop table and the thrusts by the chiropractor, there may be more pain associated with Thompson Technique adjustments. However, this technique achieves significant results and is quite commonly chosen by chiropractic practitioners.
Resources
Manage Back Pain with the Thompson Chiropractic Technique: http://www.locateadoc.com/articles/manage-back-pain-with-the-thompson-chiropractic-technique-1867.html
Understanding Chiropractic Techniques: http://www.chiropractorguide.com/alternatives/understanding-chiropractic-techniques
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