A pain in the neck

Cervical spondylosis is a condition in the neck where the discs between the vertebrae wear out. It's attributed to age, but from a chiropractic perspective I often find that there's a mechanical cause, and that the shape of the curve in the neck is to blame.

If you look at a side-view neck x-ray of someone with cervical spondylosis, you'll often see that their neck isn't curved the way it's supposed to be. There should be a 32° backward curve between the 2nd and 7th vertebrae, but I've seen many with either a completely straight neck, or even worse one that curves the wrong way!

The reason this is bad is because it changes the centre of gravity, putting the weight of your head (around 5kg) through the little discs instead of the strong weight-bearing joints at the back. This could be the result of a minor car accident or fall, possibly many years ago. The result is that the discs wear out and bone spurs start to grow in response to the extra pressure.

The spondylosis is often the effect of bad mechanics, not the problem itself.

How does a chiropractor deal with this?
Firstly, chiropractic adjustments help those joints to work better, giving you more mobility and less pain. Combining a course of adjustments with simple exercises to help improve the curve in your neck, we've seen some great results. Here are a few testimonials from our practice members if you want to have a look.

Now, everyone is different and people get varying results. But if you've been told that you have cervical spondylosis and that nothing can be done about it - don't give up! If a surgeon has said he can't help you, then all that means is that thankfully you don't need surgery. There is hope, if you want it.