Chiropractic Bilateral Weight Testing in Salem Oregon

There are a variety of different reasons that you may be experiencing back pain. This can often come from pinched nerves, deformities in the back, underlying health conditions, improper alignment, or an entire host of other reasons. However, one of the more common and easily identifiable issues is when your back is out of alignment because of how you carry your weight.

At the Spine Clinic in Salem, Oregon, we specialize in listening to you so that we can understand the issues that you are experiencing, properly diagnosing the issues that you are facing, and then working with you to identify the appropriate treatment plan. One step in diagnosing your pain is running through a physical exam that can include some tests to help identify the cause of a problem. One tool at our disposal is bilateral weight testing.

What is Bilateral Weight Testing?

This test measures how you place your weight on each side of your body. While some variability is normal in every patient, when you are significantly out of alignment, it can cause issues throughout your body, especially in your hips and spine. If you are placing more weight and stress on one side of your body, it can also wear out the joints on the left or right side more quickly. This means that many patients who have not corrected the issue end up needing a knee or hip replacement on one side.

You may be placing more weight on one side because the spine is irregularly curved, one leg is shorter than the other, or the muscles on one side of your body are significantly weaker than the other. Bilateral weight testing determines how your body is carrying and distributing weight through your legs. If there is an imbalance of more than five pounds, we usually feel that we are on the path to getting a proper diagnosis. Once we have determined that there is an imbalance, we may conduct some type of imaging of your legs and back, or a more thorough physical exam can often determine the underlying cause.

Treatment

Depending on the cause of your weight imbalance, there are a variety of treatment options that we can use to help correct the underlying issue. If there is an issue with the length of your legs, it may simply be that your spine is out of alignment, so you are posturing your hips differently. This can be corrected with different types of manipulation or physical therapies.

Misalignments in the spine can often affect how we carry our weight, so ensuring that the spine is properly aligned can help set everything else into place. Of course, an imbalance in muscle strength may be the result of years of improper spine alignment. In these cases, we often suggest a variety of different treatment options. This can include spinal manipulation and adjustment, physical therapy to strengthen muscles, and massage therapies.

Results

Many patients are surprised at how fast and effective our treatment options are. Many times, the issues we discover are caused by issues that can be corrected without the need for medications or surgeries. This alone is often worth getting a second opinion if you have been referred for surgery for a wide variety of issues. Our patients often come for their treatments during their lunch break and can return immediately to work. Additionally, improvements can often be noticed as soon as the patient leaves our office.

Overview

If you are having pain in your lower back or joints, contact The Spine Clinic in Salem, OR today to schedule an initial evaluation and see how we can make a difference in your life (503) 362-5555.