Neck issue-Chiro?? WebMD Article scares me

[christinew]

Do any of you have experience with neck cracking as you turn your head from side to side. Nothing that anyone can hear only I can hear it inside my head. I am considering chiropractic care but they'll have to manipulate my neck...and now I am reading an article from WebMD stating is may lead to strokes especially for those under 45. I am 40.

http://www.webmd.com/stroke/news/20030512/neck-cracking-raises-stroke-risk


Please weigh in....

Thanks!

Christine

[wallycat]

My neck, fingers, shoulder, etc. all crack.
I'm 50 and haven't had a stroke yet...knock on wood.

I don't know enough about chiropractics to say good or bad things about them.
I did go once after a car accident and he pretty much told me if I were willing to do exercises at home, I didn't need him :confused:

[christinew]

Wallycat: I am not sure what to do yet but glad you weighed in. Glad to knwo that I am not cracking here all by myself in Atlanta GA. I am taking Omega 3 and Sam-e also which is supposed to help?

:)

[wallycat]

I went back to re-read the article and it sounds like the chiro causes the stroke via the manipulations (according to the article). Joint popping/cracking on its own causes no problems.

[ErinM]

Weird. I'm reading an article in Self magazine from the May or June issue that talks about this very thing. Apparently the strokes are caused by manipulations that cause arterial tears, thus leading to clots and strokes.

I say if it isn't causing you any pain beyond the annoyance of hearing the noise in your head to just ignore it, it may just be akin to what Wallycat was saying about joints popping. If it's causing pain, I'd at least talk to my doctor and get an opinion.

Good luck!

[christinew]

will get in with my md. can't be too safe....must be something to this otherwise WebMD would'nt print it nor self.

hugs.

[LakeMartinGal]

I've heard that sound almost all my adult life! I do go to a chiropractor, but I have had neck issues that make that mandatory, and I'm 62 and have never had a stroke (knock wood!). If the noise is the only problem, and you have had x-rays that show no subluxation of the neck, I wouldn't let the neck be manipulated, since there's no real necessity!

HTH:)

[ErinM]

will get in with my md. can't be too safe....must be something to this otherwise WebMD would'nt print it nor self.

hugs.


I finally finished the article. They did make the point that if someone has a connective tissue disorder, they could possibly do the exact same thing (tear a neck artery) by doing something as mundane as looking behind them when they back the car out of the driveway or something. I agree with what you're doing, though. Hope it goes well!

[christinew]

Freak things happen all the time. I may afterall end up going the chiro way after my appointment this Friday.

Thanks!! Happy T Day.

[TKay]

Yes, I experience the cracking/grinding sounds. I do have arthritis in my neck and some degenerative disc disease. I have had problems with pinched nerves (that don't seem neck-related since the symptoms present themselves elsewhere, but are related to pinches in my neck). My neck has stiffened up a bit over the years where I can't turn my head as far to the side.
I went to a chiropractor for a short time. I really loved the work he did on my lower back. But whenever he manipulated my neck, it made me super nervous. It's too close to my head! If I ever go back to the chiro, I won't allow him to work on my neck anymore. Gives me the skeeves. Not sure that helps, but those are my two cents.
Good luck. It sounds like you're not having pain or problems other than the cracking? Is that right?

[Rae]

I go to the chiropractor and have my neck adjusted. I don't go on a regular basis and can tell when I need to go back because my headaches (irregular shooting pain in my right temple) come back and my neck pops/cracks more frequently. It is hard to relax when you know what is coming with the adjustment, but it does help me, so I go. And, I'm under 45, so would be in the risk age group.

If you think a chiropractor can help you, I would find one you like and then discuss this article with him/her.

[oceanjasper]

Try an upper cervical chiropractor (www.nucca.org). They don't manipulate like a traditional chiropractor, so the risk of stroke is pretty much non-existent. This is the main reason I recently went to this kind of chiropractor. However, when talking to the chiropractor, he said that there are actually more health risks in taking medication to ease neck pain than there is from being manipulated by a traditional chiropractor. There is also a similar risk of stroke when visiting the hair salon and having your hair washed (if you have to lean backwards against the sink). In other words, the risk is relatively low. I have had one upper cervical adjustment on my neck. It seemed like he didn't do much of anything, but my neck is feeling better than it has in a long time.

[buffygirl]

I use a chiropractor for hip, shoulder and neck issues. I'm not crazy about my neck being manipulated, but it is such a pain reliever that I'm ok with it. My neck cracks audibly when I'm stretching.

The other thing that I find relief with in between appointments is "The Miracle Ball Method". These relieve a great deal of pain for me in my shoulders, neck back and hip. Here is a link to Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Miracle-Ball-Method-Relieve-Reshape/dp/0761128689/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1196106277&sr=8-1

They also have them at Costco most of the time.

[Laura]

My neck started cracking about 3 months ago out of the blue. No traumatic injury, no pain, just annoying as all get out. My BIL, a ortho suggested leaving it be if it was just an annoyance as it is more likely related to arthritis or the degenerative disc condition I have in my lower back. Either it doesn't crack as much as it used to or I have gotten used to it as now it is more of a minor annoyance.

Laura

[KimK]

A friend of mine who is a physical therapist specializing in neck injuries told me once you should never let a chiropractor adjust your neck when your head is turned. Other than that, she felt neck adjustments are safe. Personally, as someone who went through 2 years of he11 due to a severely herniated C5/C6 disk, I like the "upper cervical chiropractor" idea or skipping neck adjustments altogether.

[mbrogier]

:rolleyes:

I've had a lot of chiro adjustments as a teen. It had nothing to do with my stroke--mine was in the frontal lobe and caused by a hole in my heart. When the doctors were trying to figure out why a 26 year old woman had a stroke, they never even considered the fact that I had gone to a chiropractor.

No one does the high velocity head adjustments anymore. I have heard of one person giving himself a stroke doing that, but it was a friend of a friend of a friend from church... but he did show up on the church prayer list afterwards. His head hurt, so he gave himself an adjustment in the car on the way home from church and twisted wrong.

I have trauma damage in my neck from a bad horse back riding accident and issues from fibromyalgia. I get shots of lidocaine in my neck and back through my fibro specialist. They also are recommending myofacial physical therapy, but I can't get in until January.

I prefer physical therapy to chiros. The movements are more gentle, and they build up the muscles around the affected area so you don't have to go forever. You get better.

Cracking between the joints is caused by air pockets. It's ok unless you also have pain.