What does a straightened cervical curve mean on an X-ray?

The neck is designed with a forward curve called a cervical lordosis, measured in degrees on a lateral (side view) X-ray. When that curve flattens toward straight, the neck carries load in a position it was not built for, and the structures around it take stress they were not designed to take. It is one of the measurements used to document alignment before and after a corrective care plan.

Can cervical subluxation be connected to carpal tunnel symptoms?

The nerves that supply the arm, wrist and hand originate in the cervical spine. Subluxation there interferes with that nerve flow before it ever reaches the wrist. In this case a 44-year-old woman had wrist pain and carpal tunnel symptoms alongside a straightened cervical curve and laxity at C3/C4, and her wrist function improved as those subluxations were corrected.

What is ligamentous laxity at C3/C4?

Ligaments hold vertebrae in relationship to each other. Laxity means those ligaments have loosened and are no longer providing normal stability at that level, which shows up on film as abnormal movement or positioning between the two bones. It is a structural finding, and it is one of the things a corrective care plan is built to address.

Why would digestion and immunity change after neck adjustments?

The nervous system runs every system in the body, and the nerve flow between brain and body passes through the cervical spine. When subluxation reduces that flow, the result is systemic malfunction, which shows up across systems at once. This patient's digestive and food related issues improved as her cervical subluxations were corrected.

How long does correcting a cervical curve take?

It depends on the spine, the age of the problem and how consistently the patient keeps their frequency. This patient's films were six months apart and showed a drastic improvement in her curve. Neck curve corrections are among the slower ones, and starting earlier makes them easier.

Cervical Subluxation at C3/C4: Neck Pain, Headaches, Carpal Tunnel

How She Arrived

In this month's Spinal Correction Spotlight I am featuring the comparison X-rays of a 44-year-old woman. She came to us suffering from a long list of physical and physiological issues at once: neck and low back pain, wrist pain and carpal tunnel syndrome, and headaches, along with digestive issues, hormone issues, food sensitivities and allergies, and immunity issues.

She had only ever tried conventional medical approaches to her health condition, and that path was leaving her without answers, on more medications, and with a worsening quality of life. When someone arrives carrying that many things at once, the question is what all of it has in common.

What Her Cervical Films Showed

Her initial films were taken June 14, 2022. The lateral view (the side view) showed a straightening of her cervical curvature, the lordosis her neck is designed to hold, with an area of ligamentous laxity at C3/C4. Her A/P view (front to back) showed a listing to the right that got worse as it moved up into the upper cervical area.

These subluxations, when combined, create significant stress to the nervous system, resulting in systemic malfunction, as the nerve flow between brain and body gets further reduced. That is the common thread underneath a list of complaints that otherwise look unrelated to each other.

Clinical Findings — Initial Examination

Patient: 44-year-old female

Presenting complaints: Neck and low back pain, wrist pain and carpal tunnel syndrome, headaches, digestive issues, hormone issues, food sensitivities and allergies, immunity issues

Prior care: Conventional medical approaches only, without answers

X-ray type: AP cervical and lateral cervical

Initial X-ray: June 14, 2022 — straightened cervical lordosis, ligamentous laxity at C3/C4, listing to the right worsening in the upper cervical spine

Re-evaluation X-ray: January 6, 2023 — cervical lordosis drastically improved, C3/C4 subluxation corrected, spine returned toward vertical

Care span: 6 months of corrective care between films

Outcome: Headaches and wrist dysfunction substantially improved, digestive and food related issues improved, working without issue, now under maintenance care

Cervical Lateral — Before & After

June 14, 2022 initial lateral cervical X-ray showing straightened cervical lordosis and ligamentous laxity at C3/C4 in a 44-year-old female, Rochet Family Chiropractic Royal Palm Beach

Before — Jun 14, 2022 Initial X-Ray

January 6, 2023 re-evaluation lateral cervical X-ray showing drastically improved cervical lordosis after six months of subluxation-based corrective care, Rochet Family Chiropractic Royal Palm Beach

After — Jan 6, 2023 Re-Evaluation

Cervical AP — Before & After

June 14, 2022 initial AP cervical X-ray showing a listing to the right worsening into the upper cervical spine, Rochet Family Chiropractic Royal Palm Beach

Before — Jun 14, 2022 Initial X-Ray

January 6, 2023 re-evaluation AP cervical X-ray showing significant correction of the spine back toward vertical, Rochet Family Chiropractic Royal Palm Beach

After — Jan 6, 2023 Re-Evaluation

Six Months Later

Her re-evaluation films on January 6, 2023 showed her cervical lordosis improved drastically, with the subluxation at C3/C4 corrected. Her front to back image showed a significant correction of the spine, back toward vertical.

Those spinal changes would not be significant if they were not accompanied by an improvement in functional capacity as well. Her headaches and her wrist dysfunction improved substantially, and she also saw improvement in her digestive and food related issues. She has been able to work without issue since initiating care, and is currently under maintenance care.

The Other Half of This Case

Her cervical spine was one part of the picture. Her lumbar films from the same series showed a curve reversal at L1/L2 and a degenerated L5 disc, and that correction is covered in the March spotlight. Same patient, same six months, the other end of the spine.

I am not the healer. I move the bone; God does the healing. You are a self-healing organism, and when you are subluxation free, not only does your spine heal, but your body expresses life the way you were created to.

A Long List of Symptoms Can Have One Structure Underneath It

If you are carrying several unrelated-looking health issues at once, your spine deserves a structural evaluation. Come in for an X-ray analysis and find out what your own films show.

Have Your Spine Checked for Subluxation

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