The most common headache doctors of chiropractic treat is the muscle tension or muscle contraction headache. The patient with this type of headache often describes a tight band around the head and a constant dull ache and tightness involving the back of the neck and shoulders. Although many patients have attributed their headaches to stress, this is seldom the direct cause. The real cause is that the muscles of the neck and upper spine are abnormally contracted.

Migraine headaches are particularly severe headaches that often begin to occur in childhood or adolescence. Migraines often affect one side of the head, with the vision being disturbed and the patient feeling nauseous and vomiting. The throbbing pain is a result of the expansion (dilation) of blood vessels in the head. To get to the root of most migraines, one needs to look at the spine and associated muscles, as well as dietary habits.

Pain extending from the back of the neck, usually on one side, to the shoulder and arm is among the most frequent of conditions treated in chiropractic offices. Patients with this condition often also complain of numbness and tingling in the lower arm and hand with a sense of muscle weakness. Major attention is given to identifying the causes of each patient’s problems so that the most effective treatment approach can be applied. This painful condition occurs when certain nerves, which originate in the neck portion of the spine and lead to the arm, are subjected to pressure or are otherwise irritated. This pressure or irritation is nearly always caused by some problem involving the cervical spine where the nerves originate.

Low back pain is a very common health problem (80 percent of Americans will be troubled by low back pain at some point in their lives) and is responsible for the largest amount of disability and work loss among people of all age groups. At chiropractic clinics, back and neck pain are the most frequently treated conditions. Major attention is given to identifying the causes of each patient’s problems so that the most effective treatment approach can be applied.