The picture above, is a great representation of the second phase of degeneration, which shows a more severe loss of the normal cervical curve than in phase 1 of degeneration. You can visually see a reverse cervical curve starting to occur, as the vertebral bodies start to tip down and forward putting pressure onto the discs. This stage of degeneration is the most common stage of degeneration that we see in our chiropractic office. Generally, phase 2 of cervical degeneration is caused by poor posture, an excess amount of time sitting/working on a computer or a recent whiplash (type soft tissue injury). During this phase of degeneration, patients will describe their pain anywhere from a 3-7 on a 0-10 pain scale with 10 being the worst pain imaginable. The pain is often more severe and is generally a constant dull aching that can be accompanied by, a sharp shooting pain with head movements. Symptoms of patients that are in phase 2 of degeneration are experiencing frequent headaches, constant neck pain, back pain, and may even start to feel tingling/shooting pain down the arms and into the fingers. Someone who is in phase 2 of degeneration can expect 4-6 months of care to correct for the damage and improper bio-mechanics.
As a chiropractor, most of our patients are in phase 2 of degeneration. Patients with this type of pain/symptoms are generally reaching out to us because their pain is starting to cause problems with their activities of daily living or is limiting them from doing the things they love to do. Again, as chiropractors, we try to be proactive and educate our patients about the effectiveness of getting regular adjustments before pain starts, even if there is no pain initially. By proactively treating the body we can reduce the amount of injuries, increase the body’s immune system, prevent arthritis, prevent degeneration, and increase the overall function of the body.
The doctors at Northern Edge Chiropractic, LLC located in Plymouth, MN have had great success treating patients in phase 2 degeneration. We will create a personalized treatment plan to get the patient out of pain quickly and going forward to help restore the cervical curve back to normal.