Expert: Gerald Anzalone, D.C. - 8/2/2008

Question
Until recently, I had no idea that there was any problem with my neck/spine until a chiropractic group came to my job and gave free massages.  After feeling the tightness of my neck/shoulder muscles, they urged me to come in for an evaluation.  On the xray it shows that my neck has a reverse curve, -21 degrees.  My chiropractor is recommending a 4 month aggressive treatment plan to start, but says that it may take up to a year or more to correct.  My question is this, is it really possible to correct this reverse curve through adjustments and is this reverse curve something very serious?  He is a very lighthearted and humorous person and I can't tell how serious of a condition this is or not.  I've had headaches my whole life and I never knew about the connection with my neck until now. I guess I'm just a little unsure how much I can trust that he's telling me the truth. He says that left uncorrected, there will be all sorts of problems in the future.  I am a single mother so the idea of spending this kind of money on treatment is scary but I will if it's necessary.  Any advice or words of wisdom are appreciated.  Thank You.

Answer
Kristy,

Save your money.

First, having x-rays in the absence of certain clinical symptoms unnecessarily exposes a person to ionizing radiation, which is dangerous.

Secondly, despite the claims of some chiropractors who aggressively insist that they can make changes to curves in the spine (measured by degrees on x-ray, requiring repeat x-ray exams to measure "progress" and repeated "treatments" over a long period of time, there is absolutely no evidence in the scientific literature that there is any health benefit to making these changes in curves or that these spinal abnormalities will cause any serious disease process down the road.

Third, unless you have specific symptoms, you don't need to have neck or spine adjustments or manipulations anyway. There is nothing wrong with seeing a chiropractor or a massage therapist for your and shoulder muscle tension... that CAN be corrected, but it doesn't require x-rays or repeated visits... just as-needed treatments. Remember, skeletal muscles moves bones... bones don't move bones.

Finally, some people feel that reverse curves in the cervical spine will accelerate the onset of degenerative joint disease (osteoarthritis) and degenerative disc disease in the neck, but this is somewhat controversial, and it is hypothesis that really hasn't been proven or disproven one way or the other.

When I treated patients who had markedly reversed or straightened curves in their neck AND who had symptoms that seemed to be related to those abnormal curves (usually chronic joint pain that did not radiate into the shoulders or arms), I recommended a simple traction-type device called a Posture Pump Cervical Spine Trainer for the patient to use at home to try to restore a reversed neck curve, a process, which if successful, can take up to a year or more to achieve, a bit like wearing braces:

http://www.posturepump.com/

I hope that this answers your question.