A question we often get asked, is “Why do we take X-rays?”. X-rays are a valuable tool in assessing the health of your spine and in making the correct adjustments to help your body thrive.
X-rays were discovered by accident in 1895 by Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen. He was working on an experiment accelerating electrons when a plate in his lab started to glow, it was at this point he realized he had discovered a new type of ‘ray’.
Not knowing what to call the mysterious rays he had discovered, he called them X-rays (X Standing for an unknown quantity). His first proper X-ray was of his wife’s hand – she was not impressed, as she believed the X-rays were a premonition of early death. We now know better. Roentgen later won the Nobel prize in physics for his work discovering x-rays.
One of the first to embrace X-ray technology was B.J. Palmer, the developer of Chiropractic. He purchased X-ray technology and began experimenting with it in a clinical sense. It was in 1933 when the first full spine X-ray was taken and has since been a valuable tool in a Chiropractors arsenal.
Most of us think of x-rays being used to diagnose fractures (broken bones) and other bone conditions like osteoporosis, but X-ray has many more uses than just looking for broken bones. X-rays show dense objects on film such as bone, making it perfect to assess the condition of the body’s structural foundation – AKA The spine.
Chiropractors deal with the relationship between the spine and the nerve system, looking for any imbalances between these two systems; which have an impact on the health and function of your body. Chiropractors use various methods to determine the health and function of your spine, one of these being X-rays. Chiropractors can get a lot of information about your spine through using their hands, and chiropractic exams but there is no substitute for having a visual representation of the structure and exactly what condition it is in.
X-rays help us to identify the extent of any degenerative change that may have occurred over time, any postural changes to the spine, and to rule in/out certain pathologies (disease) and anomalies that may mean we can’t adjust certain areas (contraindications) or require modification to the way your chiropractor will adjust your spine.
Often anomalies and contraindications to care are asymptomatic, meaning that they have no tell-tale signs or symptoms. Having an X-ray on hand means we can see these structural changes and make the appropriate modifications.
A study conducted by the New Zealand College of Chiropractic found that 68% of full spine X-rays showed some form of anomaly (Beck et al., 2004). These ranged from degenerative changes, postural changes, fractures, soft tissue anomalies and several others. Being aware of these changes will impact they way your chiropractor adjusts and cares for your spine.
Whilst an X-ray always provides us with valuable information about our patient's spinal health, we have recently had two cases in particular where X-rays have provided crucial information about the body that the chiropractor would not have known otherwise.
Case one:
Dave* was a new patient to our practice but has been receiving chiropractic care for nearly 18 years before he came to Eastern Bay Chiropractic. Dave had not previously had full spine X-rays before, and after a thorough health history and physical exam, we decided to take a set at his initial consultation.
Dave did not present with any complaints with his lower back, however, the X-rays revealed a type of fracture in his lower spine that develops over time. This fracture was in an unstable state and to adjust it normally could have caused Dave more issues. This would have been impossible to diagnose without X-ray.
Case two:
During the initial consolation and chiropractic exam Colin* displayed restricted movement in his neck and had minimal movement throughout the lower neck joints.
Again, after his thorough health history and physical exam, we had clinical reasoning to take X-rays and proceeded with a full spine series. These X-rays show a congenital anomaly in his lower neck called a ‘Block Vertebrae’. What this means is that when Colin’s spine formed, some of the vertebrae in his neck had developed abnormally, two of his vertebra had formed together as one.
Now although this does not have any implications for Colin in terms of needing any other treatment, it does have a big effect on how we adjust his cervical spine (neck).
Again, this is something that would have been impossible to identify without the X-ray, all it felt like was restricted motion. The use of X-ray, in this case, has allowed us to create a more specific chiropractic care plan for him that will cater to his individual body and will help him progress better.
These are just a couple of examples of how X-rays are a key factor in getting all the information about a person’s case before we begin chiropractic care. Here at EBC, we tailor the care plan for each individual to be safe and effective.
In short, the benefits of having X-rays on hand during your adjustments is a valuable tool. It provides your chiropractor with an irreplaceable tool in the analysis of your spinal health so that they can determine the safest and most effective way to care for you.
Eastern Bay Chiropractic is the only practice with X-rays facilities onsite in the Eastern Bay of Plenty. This means that if you require X-ray it can easily be done during your initial consultation or at any stage during your care. If an X-ray is required, it will always be backed up with clinical reasoning and used to make your care that much better.
To see is to know, not to see is to guess, and we won’t guess about your health.
*Names have been changed.
References:
Beck, R. W., Holt, K. R., Fox, M. A., & Hurtgen-Grace, K. L. (2004). Radiographic Anomalies That May Alter Chiropractic Intervention Strategies Found in a New Zealand Population. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, 27(9), 554-559. doi:10.1016/j.jmpt.2004.10.008