Where does your stress settle? Neck? Upper back? Head? Low back? Would you like
some help relaxing? Chiropractic spinal manipulation offers relaxing effects especially when directed
to the cervical and thoracic spine regions. Capitol Spine & Rehabilitation observes
stress every day. Capitol Spine & Rehabilitation hears our Baton Rouge
chiropractic patients ask for more spine treatment once they experience
it! Astute chiropractic patients!
MEASURING RESPONSES TO SPINAL MANIPULATION: STRESS
Initially, how do we respond to
stress? Sweaty palms. Rapid pulse and heart rate. We can feel these responses.
Researchers strive to quantify these responses. Measuring
blood pressure, heart rate variability,
heart rate, and numeric pain scale after treating upper and lower cervical
spine segments of healthy and neck pain patients, researchers found
that upper cervical manipulation enhanced
parasympathetic (calming) system and lower cervical manipulation improved
sympathetic (fight or flight) activity. Curiously, neck
pain patients’ parasympathetic activity was improved by
both upper and lower cervical manipulation. (1) Capitol Spine & Rehabilitation notices
that the effect of touch alone is powerful.
EFFECTS OF MANIPULATION ON STRESS RESPONSES
The body responds to all sorts of stimuli.
Researchers strive to see how. One
group did a meta-analysis of multiple studies about
the effect of spinal manipulation and mobilization on cardiovascular responses.
Changes in systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure
and heart rate were documented. They concluded
that spinal manipulation and mobilization may bring about a
significant decrease of systolic as well as diastolic blood
pressure. (2) An analysis of articles about the effect of spinal manipulation
on heart rate variability stated that a greater
parasympathetic response was seen when cervical and lumbar spine
areas were treated while a greater sympathetic response was noticed
when the thoracic spine was treated. (3) Another study correlated
pain response to resting blood pressure pre- and post-cervical spine non-thrust
manipulation. Non-chronic neck pain patients who underwent such manipulation experienced
reduced short-term pain and reduced systolic blood
pressure. (4) There’s
something to manipulation beyond pain relief, and Capitol Spine & Rehabilitation is happy
to share the research as it comes available.
SPINAL MANIPULATION TREATMENT
Capitol Spine & Rehabilitation uses gentle spinal manipulation
applied to the cervical, thoracic and lumbar spine areas to reduce
pain. Spinal manipulation of the thoracic spine efficiently manages
painful mechanical thoracic spine pain better than placebo treatment. (5) Effects
of thoracic manipulation go beyond the thoracic spine. Benefits
of manipulation of the thoracic spine reach the cervical spine
for patients with bilateral chronic mechanical neck pain. Thoracic thrust manipulation
and non-thrust mobilization deliver similar changes in patients’
pressure pain thresholds and reduce neck pain intensity. (6) These
are benefits of Baton Rouge chiropractic care Capitol Spine & Rehabilitation is well-experienced
to provide.
CONTACT Capitol Spine & Rehabilitation
Listen to this PODCAST
with Dr. James Cox on The
Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he
explains how chiropractic and The Cox® Technic
System of Spinal Pain Management may well attune parasympathetic
and sympathetic and pain responses in the body.
Schedule your next Baton Rouge
chiropractic appointment today. Your neck and shoulders and upper
back will be grateful for the attention as will your reduced
pain and heart rate and blood pressure after a gentle Baton Rouge spinal
manipulation session.