Causes of Subluxations & How Chiropractic Care Helps

No matter if it’s your first time to the chiropractor or you go often, you’ve likely heard the term subluxation before. For those not familiar, this term may sound a little unusual.

Our team at Impact Medical Wesley Chapel discusses what subluxation means, what the common causes and symptoms are, and how our chiropractors can help.

What is Subluxation?

Subluxation is a chiropractic term that refers to a joint that is not working correctly, such as a misalignment or restriction of movement.

A common subluxation is the vertebrae of the spine, often called a spinal subluxation. When a vertebra is misaligned, this puts pressure on the nerves within the spine, causing pain and a reduction in the function of the nerve signals between the brain and the body.

Spinal subluxations are often the root cause of several health conditions including back pain and stress. People can also suffer from other kinds of subluxations in their ribs, feet, shoulders, wrists, and other parts of the body.

If a patient’s subluxations are not treated, imbalances and pain can be caused in the body.

What Causes Subluxation?

There are many reasons why you may be suffering from subluxation. Physical subluxations can be caused by trauma such as a slip or fall, a car accident, repetitive motions, improper lifting, and even poor posture.

Chemicals such as alcohol, drugs, pollution, and poor diet can also cause imbalances in the body leading to “chemical” subluxations.

Stress is another common culprit of subluxations. Stress, anger, fear, grief, anxiety, and other negative emotions can lead to increased tension in the body and subluxations.

Common Symptoms

Several symptoms may indicate that you have a subluxation. While every patient is unique, here are a few common symptoms of subluxations:

• Back or neck pain: If you have constant back or neck pain, you may have a spinal subluxation. The pain can range from mild to sharper, intense pain.

• Headaches: Headaches may occur from the pressure that can build up due to an untreated misalignment in the spine. Often, tension headaches due to subluxation occur out of nowhere.

• Reduced range of motion: Muscle stiffness and reduced range of motion are common if you have a subluxation. As a result, you may find it hard to perform daily tasks.

Subluxations can also cause muscle tenderness, joint inflammation, numbness, and burning sensations.

Chiropractic Care

Chiropractors are specialists who are trained to treat subluxations. Our chiropractors at Impact Medical Wesley Chapel can restore the misaligned vertebrae to their proper position by using spinal adjustments.

In most cases, a chiropractor will use their hands to apply corrective pressure to the spine in a specific location and direction. This manual force helps restore the mobility and alignment of the vertebrae. Sometimes a chiropractor may use specialized instruments to detect subluxations and adjust the spine.

Generally, chiropractic adjustments are painless. But if you have been in a car accident or experienced a slip and fall, you may feel some discomfort due to inflammation.

It may be recommended that you take part in physical therapy or rehabilitation in addition to chiropractic care to help strengthen your back muscles and prevent subluxations from reoccurring.

Treat Subluxations at the Source

If you are suffering from back pain, lack of mobility, or headaches, you may be experiencing a subluxation. Our skilled chiropractors at Impact Med Wesley Chapel can treat your subluxations so you can regain mobility and live pain-free.

Reach out to our medical clinic today, it could be one of the best decisions you make for your health! Call 813-701-5424 to schedule a consultation today!