Most of the chiropractic profession focuses exclusively on the spine. While spinal adjustments are definitely an important aspect of your overall health, many issues occur in joints outside of the spine. At Better & Better Healing Arts each of the following areas will be evaluated during each and every visit:

TMJ
Shoulder
Elbow
Wrist and Hand
Hip
Knee
Ankle
Foot
Referred Pain

TMJ

• The temporomandibular joint in the hinge joint that connects your jaw to your skull (temporal bone). It functions include raising and lowering your jaw and sliding side to side enabling us to chew, talk, and yawn. However, if one or both of the joints in the TMJ aren’t seated properly, many problems can occur.
• Causes of TMJ dysfunction include:
  • Car accidents, whiplash, or blow to the head
  • Clenching and grinding the teeth
  • Stress
  • Arthritis
  • Inflammation or displacement of the disc in the joint
• Signs and symptoms of TMJ dysfunction include:
  • Pain in your face or jaw area
  • Tightness in the neck and shoulders
  • Pain in the ear or feeling of fluid backing up in the ear
  • Pain behind the ear
  • “Ringing in the ears” (Tinnitis)
  • Hearing problems
  • Dizziness
  • Headaches
  • Jaw getting “stuck” open or closed
  • Clicking or popping
  • Difficulty chewing
  • Uneven bite
  • Swelling on the side of the face
• Evaluation of the TMJ involves first checking the range of motion of the jaw and using a stethoscope to listen to the joint while the patient opens and closes the mouth to assess for crepitus (“clicking”) and find the areas of tension. Treatment involves releasing the muscles that control the joint (temporalis, medial & lateral pterygoid, masseter, and digastric). This is followed by a re-seating the jaw bone (mandible) into the correct space via adjustments.

Shoulder

• The shoulder joint is actually a complex of several joints involving the humerus, scapula, and clavicle. Therefore there is a ball and socket joint (glenohumeral) and a plane joint (acromioclavicular), along with movement from where the scapula lies on the thoracic area of the back, which isn’t a true joint. This is what allows such a variation of motion in the shoulder and produces such a wide range of motion. The problem is that the wider the mobility in a joint the more instability problems that may occur. Also with so many different bones, muscles, and tendons involved impingement may occur.
• Causes of chronic shoulder pain include:
  • Inflammation of the tendons or bursa
  • Sprains and strains
  • Frozen shoulder (adhesive capsulitis)
  • Nerve, blood vessel or tendon impingement
  • Arthritis
  • Rotator cuff injury
  • Tendon rupture
  • Torn cartilage
• Signs and symptoms
  • Pain in and around the shoulder joint
  • Inflammation or swelling in the shoulder joint
  • Pain in the neck
  • Pain on top of or beneath the shoulder blade
  • Pain with specific movements of the shoulder joint
  • Pain, numbness, or tingling down the arm or in the hand
  • Chronically cold hands
• Evaluation & Treatment
  • Evaluation of the shoulder includes performing range of motion checks and orthopedic testing to determine the cause of the pain.
  • Treatment will depend on the cause of the issue but may include muscle release, adjustments, manual therapy, taping, and therapeutic exercises.

Elbow

• Joint
  • The elbow joint is one of the most abused in the body. There are very few activities that are performed throughout your day that do not involve the elbow. There are four different groups of muscles are involved in elbow motion along with three bones and many ligaments.
• Causes include:
  • Bursitis
  • Cubital tunnel syndrome (irritated ulnar nerve)
  • Golfer’s elbow
  • Tennis elbow
  • Sprains and Strains
  • Pitcher’s elbow (mostly in children)
  • Arthritis
  • Nerve entrapment
  • Throwing injuries
  • Repetitive motions
• Signs and symptoms include:
  • Pain in and around the elbow
  • Pain with movement of the elbow
  • Numbness or tingling below the elbow
  • Inflammation or swelling in the elbow joint
• Evaluation & Treatment
  • Evaluation of the elbow includes palpation, range of motion, orthopedic tests, and neurological tests.
  • Treatment will depend on the cause of the issue but may include muscle release, adjustments, manual therapy, taping, and therapeutic exercises.

Wrist and Hand

• Joint
  • The wrist is a complex of eight bones in two rows that optimally glide along one another to allow flexion, extension, side-to-side and circular motion. The most commonly dislocated bone in the body, the most commonly misplaced bone in the body, and the most commonly fractured bone in the body are all found here. Problems in the wrist can produce issues into the rest of the hand and fingers. Fingers should also be evaluated for dysfunction.
• Causes
  • Repetitive motions such as typing, writing, drawing, or sewing
  • Arthritis
  • Carpal tunnel syndrome
  • Sudden impact injury
  • Ganglion cysts
• Signs and symptoms
  • Trouble gripping objects
  • Trouble making a fist
  • Hands “falling asleep”
  • Pain, numbness, or tingling in the hand
• Evaluation & Treatment
  • Evaluation of the wrist includes palpation, range of motion, orthopedic tests, and neurological tests.
  • Treatment will depend on the cause of the issue but may include muscle release, adjustments, manual therapy, taping, and therapeutic exercises.

Hip

• Joint
  • The hip is a ball and socket joint that is supremely important in balance. It functions in static positions such and standing and dynamic movements such as running. It involves the junction between the femur and the pelvis along with more than 10 muscles and their attachments.
• Causes
  • Arthritis
  • Bursitis
  • Labral tears
  • Sprains and strains
  • Tendonitis
  • Herniated disk
  • Pinched nerves
  • Sciatica
  • Spinal stenosis
  • Sacroiliitis
  • Osteoporosis
• Signs and symptoms
  • Pain may be felt deep in the joint, in the thigh, buttocks, groin, outer hip, or radiate down the leg.

  • Knee pain or foot pain
  • Limp may develop
• Evaluation & Treatment
  • Evaluation of the hip joint includes palpation, range of motion, orthopedic tests, and neurological tests.
  • Treatment will depend on the cause of the issue but may include muscle release, adjustments, manual therapy, taping, and therapeutic exercises.

Knee

• Joint
  • The largest joint in the body is the knee. The femur (thigh bone) and the bones of the lower leg have two cushions called menisci between them and are attached via ligaments, tendons, and muscles. Injuries may occur to any of these components resulting in knee pain. The knee is designed to move smoothly with very little work from the muscles, this means that even small problems can very quickly cause pain or discomfort and should be treated right away.
• Causes
  • Sprain/strain
  • Knee-cap displacement
  • “Pinched nerve”
  • Osteoporosis
  • Arthritis
  • Sports and recreation
  • Work related overuse
  • Injuries due to a direct blow, twisting, or falling on the knee
• Signs and symptoms
  • Pain, swelling, or stiffness anywhere around the Knee
  • Crepitus (“popping”)
• Evaluation & Treatment
  • Evaluation of the knee joint includes palpation, range of motion, orthopedic tests, and neurological tests.
  • Treatment will depend on the cause of the issue but may include muscle release, adjustments, manual therapy, taping, and therapeutic exercises.

• Foot Pain:
  • As the foot contains 26 bones, ligaments, tendons, muscles, fascia, nerves, blood vessels, and skin, any of these can be causing the problem. The area of the foot that hurts, along with a thorough evaluation, can help us pinpoint the cause
• Causes
  • Plantar fasciitis
  • Heel spur
  • Stone bruise
  • Metatarsalgia
  • Morton’s neuroma
  • Sesamoiditis
  • Fallen arches
  • Instability
  • Bunion
  • Hammer toe
  • Claw toe
  • Turf toe
  • Neuropathy
  • Tendinitis
  • Trauma
• Signs and symptoms
  • Pain while weight-bearing
  • Swelling
  • Bruising
  • Redness
  • Tenderness to touch
  • Burning
  • Stabbing pain
• Evaluation & Treatment
  • Evaluation of the foot includes palpation, range of motion, orthopedic tests, and neurological tests.
  • Treatment will depend on the cause of the issue but may include muscle release, adjustments, manual therapy, taping, and therapeutic exercises.

Referred Pain

Your nervous system controls everything your body does. Nerves start from roots in the spine and branch out through the body. Restrictions, misalignments, impingements, tension, or nerve damage can cause pain anywhere along the path of the nerve. Common ailments in the shoulder, wrists, hands, feet and other joints can sometimes be attributed to issues closer to the spine.

• Signs and Symptoms
  • Pain that radiates down the arm or leg
  • “Electric” or “shocking” nerve pain
  • Numbness or tingling
  • Shoulder, elbow, wrist, or hand pain
  • Hip, knee, ankle, or foot pain
• Evaluation & Treatment
  • Evaluation of the referred pain includes neurological tests, palpation, range of motion, and orthopedic tests.
  • Treatment will depend on the cause of the issue but may include adjustments, manual therapy, taping, and therapeutic exercises.