Below are the answers to some frequently asked questions about our new patient forms
If you have not had a recent X-ray of your area of pain, generally we like to see images of that area before we begin treatment. X-rays of the spine are highly diagnostic—in other words, they provide a wealth of information about your spine that can have a direct bearing on which treatments we use for your problem.
We refer our patients to local Radiology offices for their X-rays. Facilities like RAI and Princeton Radiology have state of the art equipment that minimizes radiation exposure while providing us with the highest quality digital images. After viewing your X-rays, we can tailor your treatments to your specific problem, giving you the best chances of good results from your care at our office.
Unfortunately, this is a popular misconception that keeps many people from seeking chiropractic care. In our practice, most patients complete their treatments in under 3 months. At this point, they are released from care. Some patients—especially those with chronic conditions– choose to continue maintenance treatments periodically, but this is their choice. And if a patient decides to forgo maintenance treatments and they need to return for care in the future, we welcome them back.
Traditionally, patients have been told to heat their back to alleviate pain. Our experience has been that since most back pain is associated with inflammation, ice actually is more effective as home therapy. Ice is therapeutic because it reduces inflammation. The heat feels better, but is not therapeutic since it tends to increase inflammation. We recommend reusable gel pacs for ice therapy since they mold to the area of the body that they are applied to. One word of caution—never apply ice directly to your skin. Always wrap the gel pac in a thin dish towel first. And limit ice applications to 30 minutes at a time with 60 minutes between consecutive ice sessions.
Yes, there are. Depending on the severity of the herniation, you may be able to avoid surgery by receiving non-surgical lumbar decompression therapy. In decompression therapy, your spine is stretched on a table that opens the disc spaces between your vertebrae. When the disc spaces are stretched, the bulge or herniation is often “pulled” back in place, thus reducing or eliminating your back and leg pain. If you would like to see if you are a candidate for lumbar decompression therapy, give our office a call at 609-426-1700. We’ll schedule you for a consultation with one of our Doctors.
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