Thermography is a safe and painless procedure used to detect heat in the human body. The highest body temperature is at the core of the body and the heat decreases progressively as it moves towards the periphery. Maintaing a symmetrical temperature pattern is one sign of proper homeostasis. A deviation from this normal pattern of temperature may indicate that a problem exists, often in the spinal column.
Thermography is used in chiropractic as an objective way to discover temperature differences in the human body. Chiropractors started using thermographic exams back in the 1920’s! The temperature difference was demonstrated to show where a vertebra was misaligned, causing irritation and inflammation. Half a century later, these findings were scientifially proven and thereafter, thermography has been shown to be an excellent method of detecting subluxations.
“Paraspinal thermography is the thermographic study using a probe or dual probe instrument for comparing one side of the spine to the other. The change in temperature is thought to relate to blood vessel constriction controlled by sympathetic nerves.” As the nerves are inflamed, there is a decreased function to the blood vessels. Often, after a chiropractic adjustment, this changes.
When nerves or nearby joint receptors become stressed, a sympathetic response occurs, commonly known as the “fight or flight mechanism.” This response then causes a decrease in blood flow. The decrease in blood flow at these levels is seen thermographically as “cold spots”.
What about other areas of your body? Because thermography shows heat signals in areas of inflammation it can point to issues that you may not be aware there is an issue. In addition to soft tissue inflammation it can also show significant vascular inflammation. For example, if a carotid artery had a significant signal then it would be important to evaluate this further to look for plaque. Identifying plaque in the carotid may save you from a stroke.
How is a thermogram performed?
This is just like having your picture taken (and you don’t even have to smile). There are no machines that squeeze or compress you. In fact, there is absolutely nothing that will be touching you. This process involves no radiation, too.
In any thermogram, the brighter colors (red, orange, and yellow) indicate warmer temperatures (more heat and infrared radiation emitted) while the purples and dark blue/black indicate cooler temperatures (less heat and infrared radiation emitted). In this image, the bright yellow area indicates the electrical fault.
detecting inflammation with thermography helps our practitioners locate potential problem areas in the body. Inflammation is the body’s way of signaling that the immune system is busy fighting.
When inflammation is present in the body, it reacts in several ways. In general, a person may feel tired, have a fever or feel ill. Untreated inflammation can cause chronic conditions.
Thermography employs digital infrared thermal imaging technology to detect heat markers. These infrared markers create a thermogram, or heat map, that shows us the areas of the body that may be inflamed and problematic.
Detecting inflammation with thermography works well because one of the signs of inflammation is heat. Other indications that a person has acute inflammation are swelling, pain and redness.
The problem occurs when inflammation symptoms are silent or more subtle. In addition, often the area of the body that’s inflamed is not apparent, making problems difficult to diagnose.
Patients with chronic pain issues benefit from thermography
Many of the patients who come to our chiropractic clinic in Den Haag are frustrated by months or years of chronic illness. Detecting inflammation with thermography can help us find the source of their chronic symptoms. ( want to know more about how we do this? Check out this interview on thermography)
We look at the thermographic image, identify the areas of inflammation and continue investigating until we diagnose the problem that is causing a patient’s illness. Once we identify the problem, patients can get the treatment they need to get back to a normal quality of life.
Gewoon Chiropractie is conveniently located just on the border of Den Haag and Scheveningen and is 20 minutes away from Den Haag Centraal train station by Tram 1 Through a vitalistic approach to chiropractic, we view each patient as a whole, rather than as a single symptom to be treated. We know that chiropractic is so much more than back pain, neck pain and headaches. There are multiple techniques we use to detect, find and correct nerve impingements, that we call subluxations. We believe chiropractic care is a lifestyle & recommend regular spinal checks for you and your whole family. Give us a call! 070 204 41 34
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