What is Chiropractic
Neurology?
As in medicine and dentistry,
the chiropractic profession has individual
specialists. Through education, training
and board certification, these doctors
choose to limit their practice to a
certain specialty to assist members
of their profession and allopathic physicians
in the diagnosis and treatment of a
variety of conditions. Within the chiropractic
profession, there are specialists in
radiology, orthopaedics, neurology,
and physical rehabilitation.
Typically, a chiropractic neurologist
serves in the same consulting manner
as a medical neurologist. The difference
is that the therapies or applications
of a chiropractic neurologist do not
include drugs or surgery. As a result,
certain conditions are more customarily
seen by a chiropractic neurologist as
opposed to a medical neurologist, and
vice versa.
Chiropractic Neurologist see
patients with a variety of movement
disorders, dystonia, post-stroke rehabilitation,
and radiculopathy or nerve entrapment
syndromes that are consequences of peripheral
or central types of lesions.
Chiropractic neurologists can
provide therapies and treatments as
well as counsel when there is a diagnostic
dilemma or a question of appropriateness
of care regarding an individual lesion
or scenario.
The training to become a board
certified neurologist in the chiropractic
profession is an additional three years
after the doctor's degree, which is
conducted under the auspices of an accredited
university or college that is recognized
by the U.S. Office of Education. During
that training, there is a didactic and
residency - based/clinically based training.
After completing those requirements,
the chiropractor will sit for a board
examination in neurology, which is held
once per year by our independent examining
board. The areas that are examined are
specific to the field of neurology and
include clinical and diagnostic techniques
and knowledge of neurophysiology. The
certification examination includes oral
and practical portions as well as a
battery of psychometric testing.
The central nervous system
consists of the brain and the spinal
cord. The peripheral nervous system
consists of nerves found in the head
and body and your brain is designed
to receive and send information to your
body. Your body is controlled by receptors,
specialized nerve cells, that respond
to different sensations. The sensation
of touch is controlled by various receptors
in the body that respond to compression
and stretch. Receptors associated with
touch have a greater effect on the central
nervous system than the receptors related
to vision, taste, hearing and temperature.
Mechanoreceptors are receptors of touch
that are found in the joints of the
body and especially our spine and are
very sensitive to motion. If the joints
of the spine do not move freely, the
activity of these nerve receptors is
suppressed. A consequence of this is
a change in muscle tone, coordination
and increase in pain.
