Patient Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, we routinely submit insurance claims for our patients. While many insurance companies offer complete chiropractic coverage, some offer only partial coverage or no benefits at all. Our office accepts Blue Cross Blue Shield, Harvard Pilgrim, and Medicare. Additionally, we handle worker’s compensation, personal injury, and accept cash patients. Call our office to verify your health coverage.

Our office only takes x-rays if the history and examination findings indicate that it is medically necessary. Under these circumstances, we would refer the patient to a local imaging center. This cost is typically covered by most insurance policies.

There has always existed a void in the health care marketplace to serve the needs of those with neuromusculoskeletal complaints, such as low back pain, headaches, sciatica, numbness/tingling in the arms… that arise from a mechanical cause. Chiropractors exist for the purpose of treating mechanical joint problems. We explore movement and focus on the goal of restoring normal biomechanics to the spine and extremities with manual methods. Traditional chiropractic therapy typically consists of spinal manipulation, but also encompasses many other techniques used to restore joint function. See our services.

An adjustment or manipulation is the act of putting a gentle force through a restricted joint in an effort to restore normal mobility and function of the joint and sorrounding musculature. The adjustment typically results in a ‘cracking’ or ‘popping’ sound. The joints in your spine contain a fluid called synovial fluid. The brief movement creates a vacuum within the joint, causing some of the dissolved gases in the synovial fluid to come out of solution and form a gas bubble. This creates the audible sound typically heard with an adjustment.

The chiropractic adjustment carries a very low risk of serious complication. Patients may experience mild soreness following an initial treatment, which may last for 24-48 hours. Some patients feel improvement immediately. How a patient recovers depends on the ability of the patient’s body to adapt to the new flexibility aquired from the adjustment. This is not unlike soreness after an initial workout following a six month break from the gym.

ART is a patented, state of the art soft tissue system/movement based massage technique that treats problems with muscles, tendons, ligaments, fascia and nerves. Headaches, back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, shin splints, shoulder pain, sciatica, plantar fasciitis, knee problems, and tennis elbow are just a few of the many conditions that can be resolved quickly and permanently with ART. These conditions all have one important thing in common: they are often a result of overused muscles.

Every ART session is actually a combination of examination and treatment. The ART provider uses his or her hands to evaluate the texture, tightness and movement of muscles, fascia, tendons, ligaments and nerves. Abnormal tissues are treated by combining precisely directed tension with very specific patient movements.

These treatment protocols – over 500 specific moves – are unique to ART. They allow providers to identify and correct the specific problems that are affecting each individual patient. ART is not a cookie-cutter approach.

This is a difficult question to answer for any medical professional given that patients are not all the same. The main factors that determine how much care you will need are the individual’s ability to recover, the treatment goals (symptom reduction, functional restoration, or prevention of further relapses), age, severity of the condition, chronicity of the condition, and adherance to the treatment plan & frequency.

Once a patient’s primary complaint is resolved and proper movement and function is returned, exercises are given to maintain functional and structural intergrity. Patients that maintain their physical fitness and a proper lifestyle do not usually require further care unless they elect to do so or re-injure themselves. However, some patients have significant degenerative changes or past traumas that have resulted in permanent structural damage. These patients require ongoing management, not unlike a diabetic taking insulin. There’s a chemical solution to diabetes and there’s a mechanical solution to joint dysfunction.

At our office, we usually manage the most prevelant type of scoliosis, which is idiopathic (unknown cause) and seen in adolescents. While the spine is still growing through adolesence, chiropractic treatement is very effective in managing scoliosis through specific manipulation and, most importantly, proper exercise.

Although the formal education recieved through chiropractic college is similar to that of a medical doctor, the main difference is that chiropractic is a manual, hands-on profession, which does not prescribe drugs or perform surgery. The main objective of chiropractic is treating the underlying musculoskeletal cause of the condition through conservative methods and allowing the body to heal itself.

The Doctor of Chiropractic (D.C.) degree requires a minimum of ten 15-week trimesters (three years, four months total) of full-time resident study, including a clinical intership. This is equivalent to five academic years.

Summary of course hours for a Doctor of Chiropractic:

• Anatomy – 585 hours
• Biochemistry – 75 hours
• Physiopathology – 345 hours
• Microbiology & Public Health – 120 hours
• Diagnosis – 525 hours
• Diagnostic Imaging – 270 hours
• Clinical Laboratory – 75 hours
• Associated Studies – 165 hours
• Chiropractic Philosophy – 135 hours
• Chiropractic Technique – 615 hours
• Ancillary Therapeutic Procedures – 90 hours
• Clinical Practice Issues – 75 hours
• Clinical Experience & Outpatient Services – 1,320 hours
• Total Core Hours – 4,380 hours
• Elective Courses – 225 hours
• Total – 4,620 hours

In addition to completing graduate training, chiropractors must pass national and state licensing examinations prior to entering practice and adhere to state continuing education requirements.