Arthritis Care

Chiropractic care offers a holistic way to manage your arthritis pain. Trust the experience of Dr. Phil McCary of Laurelhurst Chiropractic in Portland, Oregon, to ease your pain with gentle adjustments, soft-tissue manipulation, and active exercises to stretch your joints. If you live in the Portland area, call the office or use the online booking tool today to make an appointment to ease your arthritis pain.

What causes arthritis?

There are many types of arthritis, with osteoarthritis being the most common. Osteoarthritis is a degenerative condition that results from wear and tear and can affect any joint, but you may experience it most notably in your hips, knees, lower back, or neck.

When you have osteoarthritis, the cartilage, which provides a smooth surface for joint motion, starts to break down. This causes pain because you essentially have little cushioning support as you move the joint.

How can chiropractic help arthritis?

Chiropractors take an all-natural, drug-free approach to whole-body health. They focus on your body’s structure and how it may be contributing to a pain cycle. If the structure of a joint is off, then it can’t work optimally. Chiropractic maximizes the function of arthritic joints so you improve overall function and reduce pain.

How does a chiropractor treat arthritis?

At Laurelhurst Chiropractic, Dr. McCary offers mobilization techniques that may involve gentle manipulations, stretching, and soft-tissue electrical stimulation. He may also offer traction, a less forceful kind of manipulation, as well as recommend massage therapy to relieve your pain.

Is chiropractic effective for arthritis treatment?

Chiropractic can be quite effective in helping you manage your symptoms. Research has shown that chiropractic care, along with at-home stretching and patient education, helps reduce pain associated with arthritis, compared with stretching and education alone.

Chiropractic care is especially useful for people with arthritis in:

  • Relaxing muscles.
  • Increasing joint range of motion.
  • Improving joint coordination.

When your spine is affected by osteoarthritis, it can cause changes in your posture that lead to nerve irritation. As a result, you may have pain in your lower back, sciatica, or other pain. Chiropractic effectively reduces these symptoms, too.

How does chiropractic care differ from conventional arthritis treatments?

Conventional treatments for arthritis often include NSAIDs, or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. These don’t stop the progression of arthritis or improve your function, but they may help with pain relief.

Chiropractic is a drug-free way to treat arthritis. It may not halt the progression of arthritis, but it can improve your muscle and joint function, thus relieving your symptoms and possibly improving your overall function.

If you undergo chiropractic regularly, prior to symptoms arising, you may even prevent osteoarthritic changes from occurring in the first place.