Expert: Dr. Jeff Carr, DPT, MTC, ATC, CSCS - 4/9/2002

Question
I have been suffering for 2 months with sinus pain in my face. At the same time I am seeing a chropracter, he says my disks are not lined up right and my neck curves wrong. What I was wonering is could the pain in my face be caused by my back? or is it a different thing that is causing it? Should I see a specialist? If so what kind, I have been to the doctor many times and they just put me on more medicine.

Answer
Amber:
Yes your neck may contribute to your sinus pain, but not because your 'discs are out'. Chiropracters falsly assume that because you are not in alignment at the moment of the x-ray then you must have something wrong. That is a cheap way of trying to justify your going back again and again and again. Movement is the only thing that matters in the spine. If you are out of alignment, but are pain free and move just fine, then why crack your neck and make you weaker? Anyways, just for fun ask any chiropracter if he or she has ever seen anyone with a perfect spine that they had to turn away? Never happened, because eveyone has something lined up wrong in an x-ray because 34 moving parts stacked on top of each other will always move a little. anyways sorry about the chiropracter tangent, sinus pain or problems in the face are rare because the nerves that go to your face come out of your brain stem before the neck starts. I would go see a neurologist to rule out more serious problems and ditch the chiropracter in this case.
Thank you for your question.
Dr. Carr, DPT, MTC,ATC, CSCS