If you’ve been on any social media platform lately, you’ve likely seen some Chiropractic videos with doctors demonstrating the Ring Dinger or Y-Strap adjustment on patients. If you’re unfamiliar, the basic idea is that the doctors will take piece of canvas, or even a towel, wrap it around the patient’s skull while they’re lying face up on a table, and then very sharply and strongly pull the skull towards them. During these videos, you’ll always hear a huge ‘crack’ and the ‘patient’ will talk about how much better they feel after. At our Newark chiropractic office, Advanced Back & Neck Pain Center, you won't see us doing these moves. But why not?
As a result of the increased popularity of these videos, we are often asked to perform these adjustments. There are very good reasons why we don’t use these moves and why we also recommend that patients be wary of them.
1. The anatomy of the upper neck is not designed to tolerate those type of forces. The stability of our neck is governed by numerous ligaments throughout the spine and these ligaments are generally not designed to handle a sharp, long-axis distraction, i.e. pulling the skull away from the shoulders, type pull. This is especially true in the top two vertebrae, the Atlas(C1) and Axis(C2), which do not have a disc between them like every other level in the neck. While it is safe and effective to provide a stretch to these areas, like with Non-Surgical Decompression Therapy, it is a different story to provide a sharp, forceful pull.
2. There are numerous conditions that are easily undiagnosed that can make it particularly dangerous. These conditions are Chiari Malformation, a connective tissue disorder like Ehler’s Danos Syndrome, and/or Upper Cervical Instability which can typically result from a whiplash type injury. Many times these conditions can be asymptomatic and so the patient can have it without even being aware. For example, Chiari Malformation affects about 1 in 1000 people with many going undiagnosed until adulthood.
3. It’s not taught at Chiropractic schools. When I graduated from Chiropractic school in early 2014, this is not a move that we were taught, or really had even heard about. Things may be different today but most likely this move was born and gained relevance primarily through social media as a way to generate clicks, views, and most importantly, popularity for the clinician performing it.
4. It creates a ‘Magic Bullet’ mentality. A lot of times with these videos, the ‘patient’ will describe how much better they feel and their pain is gone, etc. I don’t doubt that a lot of these people do feel initial relief but the video is describing their results as if they are cured of pain. There is no magic bullet with regards to our health. We are consistently encountering stresses through our life in the form of thoughts, toxins and traumas and we need to create systems that manage and negate the impact of those stresses. Exercise should be a constant. Healthy diet and sleep should be a constant. And taking care of your spine with regular chiropractic treatment at Newark chiropractor, Advanced Back & Neck Pain Center, should be a constant to consistently feel great!
If you had been curious of the Ring Dinger, does this change your mind? Or does it still seem like something you want to try? In my opinion, there is nothing that has ever, or will ever, beat the results of consistent, concerted effort at maintaining your health. We see ‘miracle cures’ all the time in all healthcare professions, and chiropractic is no exception!
If you are hurting, call our office anytime at 302-368-1300 or visit www.advancedback.com/schedule to make an appointment and allow us to show you what consistent, research based, safe and effective chiropractic treatment can do for you health! Find out why we've been ranked Delaware's Best Chiropractic office for the last 10 years!
