Upper Cervical Chiropractic in Atlanta
With a desire to build upon his family history in the Chiropractic Profession, most notably his Grandfather, Dr. Walter V Pierce, Dr. Culig founded Pierce Upper Cervical Chiropractic in dedication to his predecessors before him.
“My Grandfather constantly preached that a healthcare professional should have ONE motive, to get the patient well in the shortest amount of time without the use of drugs or surgery. At Pierce Upper Cervical, we pride ourselves on these principles.”
What is Upper Cervical Chiropractic?
WHAT IS UPPER CERVICAL CHIROPRACTIC?
The first big difference when it comes to upper cervical chiropractic care is that the focus is placed on adjusting just the top two bones in the neck. These bones are called the C1 and C2 vertebrae or the atlas and axis. They play a very specialized role and are unique from all of the other vertebrae.
Because they balance the head, even a slight misalignment in these two bones can result in changes throughout the spine. Also, because they are part of the cervical spine (7 neck bones), they help to facilitate blood flow to the brain via the vertebral foramen (tiny bone loops that offer safe passage to vertebral arteries).
The atlas plays an even more important role. It surrounds and protects the brainstem right at the vital juncture where it meets the spinal cord. Therefore, even the smallest misalignment can affect the function of the central nervous system by putting pressure on the brainstem and reducing blood flow.
Low Force Corrections for Precision and Safety
Once the images are analyzed and the calculations are measured it is time for your first correction. For this procedure, you lay on the table, and the doctor applies some gentle pressure by using an adjustment instrument. We will then perform our post-adjustment exam to ensure that the correction was successful.
While some patients may not notice anything until the coming days or weeks when long-term problems get better or go away completely. Other more sensitive patients may immediately notice things such as the fact that both legs are the same length after perhaps years of being slightly off balance. Whether you notice the effects instantly or in the weeks to come, the same thing holds true – the adjustments are very gentle and safe. The precise measurements that were taken translate into long-term benefits.
The Long-Lasting Benefits of Upper Cervical Chiropractic Care In Atlanta
Your practitioner may provide you with some tips for helping the adjustment last longer. Once the soft tissue around your atlas and axis stabilize, you can start to space out your appointments. However, the benefits will continue working. Therefore, this becomes a very cost-effective way to get safe and natural care.
Our Upper Cervical Treatment
The Upper Cervical Adjustment
Our procedure to realign the Upper Cervical Spine utilizes a light-forced, precise instrument (shown to the right). This vector for this adjustment is based off of the findings from your 3D imaging, after it is analyzed by the Doctor.
Using the leverage of your skull, the corrective procedure only utilizes 3-5 pounds of force and most patients describe the adjustment as "A light tap behind the ear".
Before and After Indicators
Along with post imaging, our treatment consists of constant indicators that allow us to see how your body is responding to treatment.
One of the indicators that we use is paraspinal digital infrared thermography a (pictured to the left). This allows us to see how the body is balanced from side-to-side before, during and after treatment.
Soft-Tissue Treatment
When striving for the best treatment results for the Cervical spine, it is impossible to ignore all of the soft-tissue that attaches to the vertebra.
There are 11 muscles that directly attach to C1 and 15 muscles that directly attach to C2. These muscles help to stabilize and provide the majority of motion for the head and neck.
It is important to release these muscles throughout your treatment in order to ensure that the entire neck stabilizes to its optimum potential.
