Arthritis Treatment is Provided by Zaker Chiropractic

Few conditions can slow you down to such a painful and frustrating degree as arthritis. Chronic joint pain and inflammation can make even the simplest tasks a massive challenge. As debilitating as your symptoms may seem, however, you may have discouraged by the treatment methods you've encountered thus far. Painkillers only ease the discomfort for a little while, while joint fusion surgery is (quite rightly) reserved for only the most extreme cases. But the good news is that you can indeed find therapies that address the underlying problems behind your arthritis pain without requiring surgical intervention. Your arthritis doctor at Zaker Chiropractic can provide you with safe, drug-free, non-surgical arthritis treatment strategies for keeping your symptoms at bay.

What Is Arthritis?

It's not easy to classify arthritis beyond the most obvious definition of "joint pain." It generally refers to an inflammatory or degenerative conditions that causes joints to feel painful and stiff. According to the Arthritis Foundation, over 100 different conditions qualify as types of arthritis, including:

• Bacterial, fungal or viral infections that cause acute joint inflammation
• Gout (a painful condition caused by the creation uric acid crystals, most commonly afflicting the big toe)
• Psoriatic arthritis, an autoimmune problem that causes both joint inflammation and skin psoriasis

The most common types of arthritis are osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Osteoarthritis is a problem that occurs when the cartilage inside your joints eventually breaks down. This breakdown allows the ends of the bones to rub together painfully. Osteoarthritis usually occurs after many years of everyday joint motion, but it can develop more quickly if you subject your joints to abnormal stress (such as years of obesity or high-impact athletic activity). Rheumatoid arthritis occurs when your body's immune system attacks a joint's fluid and lining as if it were a disease germ, causing periods of intense pain and swelling.

Non-Surgical Treatment Methods From Our Arthritis Doctor

Many of the 50 million American adults who suffer from arthritis turn to medication for relief -- only to find that such relief disappointing in many respects. Over-the-counter anti-inflammatory drugs only work for a few hours at a time, and the relief they provide may be partial at best. Some of these drugs can also pose threats to the stomach or liver. Heavy prescription drugs such opiates can prove even more dangerous due to the risks of overdose, drug interactions and addiction. On the other end of the scale, surgery to stop arthritis pain usually means fusing the joints so that they can no longer flex at all. In addition to creating permanent loss of function, these procedures carry risks of their own and may require extensive recuperation time. Your arthritis doctor at Zaker Chiropractic can offer safe, non-surgical treatment modalities such as:

• Cryotherapy - Certain kinds of cryotherapy (freezing) therapy have demonstrated their effectiveness against osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis symptoms. Ice massage and whole-body cryotherapy work especially well to reduce pain and inflammation while improving joint function.
• Decompression therapy - Bulging discs which have lost their water content tend to lose height, which stresses the vertebral joints to the point that osteoarthritis develops. We can administer spinal decompression therapy to infuse flattened discs and help them regain height, normalizing the space between vertebrae and easing joint stress.
• Chiropractic adjustment - Once we've gotten your joint swelling under control, we may recommend chiropractic adjustment to bring those joint components back into a healthier alignment. This is especially helpful when degeneration in the joint is causing pain.
• Massage therapy - Massage therapy is good for both osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Manual stimulation of the soft tissues increases blood flow and enhances fluid drainage to keep pain and swelling under control without drugs.
• Physical therapy - Gentle exercise and other forms of physical therapy can help you improve or maintain your strength, balance, and range of motion, enabling you to enjoy your regular activities with less pain and greater mobility.

Zaker Chiropractic Has Your Holistic Arthritis Management Plan

Any of the treatment techniques listed above could do wonders for  your arthritis symptoms -- so you can imagine how powerfully they work in combination. That's why Zaker Chiropractic makes perfect sense as your source for holistic arthritis management. We know how to create personalized arthritis treatment plans in which multiple therapies complement and enhance each other's effectiveness. If that sounds like the kind of non-surgical, non-pharmaceutical approach you've been hoping to find, then it's time you found our chiropractic clinic. Contact any of our locations today to learn more about our treatment options and schedule an initial consultation!