Aurora Chiropractic Center Understands How Images Help a Back Pain Patient

“Seeing is believing.” Ever heard that saying before? Aurora Chiropractic Center bets you have. Aurora Chiropractic Center knows that Juneau back pain patients often want to see the cause of their pain. (They believe they have pain by now!) Today, imaging does not always meet a patient’s desire to see the cause if it’s the result of an issue like chemical irritation when disc material is on a nerve root, so imaging can only go so far in meeting a patient’s desire to see what’s going on. But Juneau back pain patients can believe that their Juneau chiropractor will thoroughly tell them the cause of their pain…and set a treatment plan to ease that pain.

THE GOOD OF IMAGING

Today’s imaging recommendations are all about reducing imaging exposure and cost. The concern of radiation exposure is being dealt with by carefully examining low back pain patients for more specific findings, reducing radiation dose and doing more MRI than CT. These efforts in turn decrease the cost of imaging. (1) Recommendations today are to no do imaging for 6-8 weeks of conservative treatment. Aurora Chiropractic Center has followed the Cox Technic System of Spinal Pain Management which recommends holding off on imaging (in the absence of "red flags" which a thorough clinical examination finds) for 30 days during which time 50% improvement is sought. If a month pass without such improvement, imaging is ordered. These are positive situations for Juneau back pain patients and their healthcare providers like your Juneau chiropractor most of the time.

BACK PAIN SUFFERERS WANT TO “SEE”

Other times (and Aurora Chiropractic Center totally understands this!) patients want to “see” their diagnosis. Words and descriptions and drawings are one thing, but imaging is much more personal. When it comes to non-specific back pain, there is an added layer of curiosity as it is “non-specific” and doesn’t always have a glaring cause for the pain. The public and patients believe imaging helps determine the back pain condition. They are not alone as some healthcare professionals do, too. (2) That is likely why patients and their healthcare providers like MRI and xrays.

MEDICINE AND SPINAL IMAGING

Interestingly, for years, medicine downplayed the concept of imaging for spine problems. Today, medicine becomes more and more interested in it. For cervical spine myelopathy, for example, treating physicians depend on imaging to ascertain the severity of it. Particularly, a group of researchers considered the possibility that imaging helped visualize the relationship between lumbopelvic alignment and cervical alignment and subsequent cervical spine myelopathy severity. (3) Imaging has its good points. Your Juneau back pain specialist at Aurora Chiropractic Center wants to be sure imaging is positively contributory to the treatment plan for our back pain patients’ final recovery and pain relief. We know that “seeing is believing” and respect what imaging brings to the treatment plan when needed.

CONTACT Aurora Chiropractic Center

Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Dan Clark on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he explains how useful imaging can be for a patient’s treatment plan and final outcome of care.

Schedule your Juneau chiropractic appointment at Aurora Chiropractic Center to more fully comprehend your back pain and its relieving treatment plan whether you can see its source or not because you definitely already believe you have pain. Aurora Chiropractic Center believes in its relief. You can, too.