Saturday, March 20, 2010

Have you ever been to a chiropractor?

Have you been to a chiropractor lately?  Have you ever been to a chiropractor?
Regardless of your answer to these questions, do you know what a chiropractor does?

I have been a practicing chiropractor for the last 16 years.  Helping people with neck pain, back pain, sciatica and headaches with chiropractic care is rewarding.  As  a profession, chiropractors only provide care to somewhere around 10% of our population.  I have always wondered why this number is so low since patient satisfaction with chiropractic treatment is so much higher than it is with traditional medical care and that most independent research indicates that chiropractic care is more effective than western medicine for back pain. 

Chiropractic care is an excellent , conservative treatment for many types of back injuries including those caused by auto accidents and various work injuries.  That being the case, I have always thought that more people don’t seek out chiropractic care for their back and neck injuries because they don’t know what to expect with a chiropractic visit.

In this post, I am going to tell you exactly what procedures that our new patients go through at the time of their first visit. 

Once a new patient comes to our office they are asked to fill out a brief informational health history that covers both past and current problems.  After they are done with this form, I review the history to acquaint myself with current and past complaints that are relevant to the reason for the appointment.

With the history form reviewed, I take the patient to one of my exam / treatment rooms where I ask the patient to tell me more about their pain.  During this time I also ask additional questions to help me get a good understanding of the patients’ concerns. 

After I am satisfied with my understanding of the patients’ concerns and they have nothing else to add to the history, I perform an examination on the involved areas that includes range of motion tests, necessary orthopedic tests and neurological tests.  Usually the information that I obtain from these tests is sufficient to allow me to make a decision regarding treatment.

If treatment is indicated, care usually involves therapy to relax the muscles followed by chiropractic adjustments to relieve the pain / dysfunction of the involved joints.  Since many of our new patients have never been to a chiropractor before, I always ask the patients to help me keep all of our procedures within their “comfort zone”.  I have always thought that this is very important since so many Americans are unfamiliar with manual type therapies.

The number of chiropractic visits varies person to person depending on the severity of the injury and each persons response to care.        


Writers Bio

Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.

Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.

Call Steve Jones at

(619) 280 0554

San Diego Chiropractic


Ergonomic Office Equipment Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav, the Ergonomic Mouse Pad
or Visit Ergonomic Blog, "Ergonomically Yours" And read the latest News in the Ergonomic World.

Better Health Steve Jones

Wednesday, March 17, 2010

Neck Pain and Rear–End Type Car Accidents

Neck Pain and Rear–End Type Car Accidents: "Neck Pain and Rear–End Type Car Accidents

By far the most common injury that our patients suffer when hit by another car from behind is neck pain. Neck pain as a result of a car accident is usually caused by muscles and ligaments being stretched and torn from the force of the accident.

When you are in your vehicle and hit from behind, the first thing that happens is your neck straightens and your head is whipped backward. As your head is whipped backward, the muscles in the front of your neck are stretched to their limit. Sometimes the stretch placed on these muscles pulls and tears some of the muscle fibers causing a painful, strained feeling."
read more Neck Pain and Rear–End Type Car Accidents


Writers Bio

Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.

Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.

Call Steve Jones at

(619) 280 0554

San Diego Chiropractic


Ergonomic Office Equipment Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav, the Ergonomic Mouse Pad
or Visit Ergonomic Blog, "Ergonomically Yours" And read the latest News in the Ergonomic World.

Better Health Steve Jones

Pinched Nerves and Whiplash Car Accident Injury

Pinched Nerves and Whiplash Car Accident Injury: "Pinched Nerves and Whiplash

Although neck pain is the most common symptom from whiplash accidents, pinched nerve symptoms are also common.

When we are involved in a whiplash accident, our heads are usually thrown forward and backward or side to side. This movement of our heads forces our necks into extreme positions of flexion and extension leading to other types of injury.

The vertebra in our necks and the rest of our spines are designed to allow the nerves to pass from the spinal cord out through openings between the vertebra where they then continue to course through the body to the muscles or other structures that they provide nerve impulses to."

read more Pinched Nerves and Whiplash Car Accident Injury

Thursday, March 11, 2010

Does Chiropractic Work?

Does Chiropractic Work?

As a chiropractor, I am always asked “Does chiropractic really work?”  This is not only an unfair question; it is also a loaded question.     Chiropractic care is a very effective form of treatment for some traditional symptoms like neck pain and back pain and not for others.

Being a Chiropractor in San Diego, I see sports related injuries all year round.  Running injuries, falls from bicycles or rollerblades, golf injuries, basketball injuries – you name it and most likely we have seen it.  More often than not these injuries result in typical sprain / strains that result in neck pain, back pain, sciatica etc. 

The types of injuries that I just listed are a few of many joint injuries / symptoms that chiropractic care is very effective in treating.  You might say that chiropractic care was made for such injuries.  The reason that I convey this is because of the nature of these types of injuries. 

The typical sprain / strain injury usually results when a fall or an accident forces a joint through an excessive or abnormal range of motion.  This type of injury stretches the ligaments and muscles that move and support the spine.  The result of this type of injury is irritation and inflammation of the joint and scar tissue formation. 

Without chiropractic treatment, the scar tissue from sprain / strain injuries restricts and or alters normal joint motion which can cause pain and stiffness.  Chiropractic manipulations help to restore full, normal joint motion by breaking down scar tissue that would otherwise cause stiffness and pain.

Chiropractic care is an excellent form of therapy for reducing the effects of postural stress from sitting at a computer, poor lifting habits, poor posture and a variety of other stresses that we expose ourselves to on a daily basis.

So, does chiropractic work? 

The only way to know is go visit one and see.  Chiropractors want their treatment to work and are reluctant to take on cases that may not properly respond to their therapy.  No doctor that I know wants to have unsuccessful treatment sessions during the course of their work day. 

A good chiropractor can look at your history, perform an examination and make a sound determination on how well you will respond to care.  That being said, we are known as the “back doctors” so if you have neck pain, back pain or any spinal related pain, a visit to the chiropractor may be just what you need. 


Writers Bio

Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.

Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.

Call Steve Jones at

(619) 280 0554

San Diego Chiropractic


Ergonomic Office Equipment Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav, the Ergonomic Mouse Pad
or Visit Ergonomic Blog, "Ergonomically Yours" And read the latest News in the Ergonomic World.

Better Health Steve Jones

Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Sitting Postures and Back Pain

Sitting Postures and Back Pain

Sitting is a pain in the @#$%&!  Or at least a pain in the back.

Our spines do not like sitting as a rule.  If you remain seated in the same position for a long enough period of time you will experience some level of discomfort. 

Although there are many reasons that sitting eventually causes discomfort, one of these reasons cannot be avoided.  The natural center of gravity for a sitting human being is approximately 1 inch in front of the belly button.  In order to park our upper bodies over our center of gravity we have to either lean forward eliminating the support of our backrests or slide our butts downward and forward assuming a slumped position.  Often these postures are accompanied by crossed legs or feet and leaning our elbows on the desk or our armrests in order to promote stability of the spine.

Poor posture often results from chairs and work stations that are void of proper ergonomic considerations.  Postural stress causes discomfort in the neck, back and arms resulting in fatigue and fidgeting.  It comes as no surprise that these consequences of poor posture have a negative effect on your mood, your concentration and your productivity.

In the long run, poor posture can cause chronic back pain, neck pain and a host of syndromes that affect the upper extremity as a whole.

I found an excellent definition of poor posture in  a book called “Backs” by Leonard Ring in which he defined poor posture as “a faulty relationship of the various parts of the body which produces increased strain on supporting structures”.

As important as proper sitting posture is for a younger person with an otherwise healthy back, it is of much greater importance to those who are older and may have some level of arthritis in their spines or a history of injury.  Arthritis weakens the joints in the back and makes it more sensitive to the stresses of prolonged sitting when using good posture and much more likely to suffer consequences in situations that involve poor posture.  A history of back injuries is also detrimental to the spine during sitting positions especially when it is exposed to the stress of poor posture.   All of those old gymnastics, football, hockey and general horseplay falls and jolts have a cumulative effect that decreases our ability to endure stressful postures.

The bottom line is that there are many good sources on the Internet that describe the characteristics of proper sitting positions.  The more stress that you can eliminate from your sitting postures the happier your back will be.



Writers Bio

Dr. Steven R. Jones is a licensed Chiropractor in the state of California. He received his doctorate from Palmer College of Chiropractic-West in Sunnyvale, California. Dr. Jones has treated his patients for over 15 years at his own San Diego Chiropractic practice.

Dr. Jones is accepting new patients and would be happy to consult with you regarding your chiropractic needs.

Call Steve Jones at

(619) 280 0554

San Diego Chiropractic


Ergonomic Office Equipment Website to learn more about or Buy Ergo Nav, the Ergonomic Mouse Pad
or Visit Ergonomic Blog, "Ergonomically Yours" And read the latest News in the Ergonomic World.

Better Health Steve Jones