Minnesota Viking Tony Richardson Visits Northwestern
Minnesota Vikings fullback Tony Richardson, accompanied by his chiropractor, Dr. Howard Fidler, visited the Northwestern Health Sciences University campus in October to speak to the student body about the value of chiropractic for professional athletes.
Richardson has been a proponent of chiropractic every since his introduction to the profession by now-retired Emmitt Smith, who holds the National Football League (NFL) record for career rushing yards. Impressed with the success and longevity of Smith's career, Richardson decided to try chiropractic.
"My body is my greatest asset," said Richardson. "Chiropractic is the number one thing helping me out. If I have an injury, the first person I call is my chiropractor. What Dr. Howie has done has helped my career. Without chiropractic, I would not have been able to play in the NFL for 13 years."
Dr. Fidler, who is also the team chiropractor for the Minnesota Whitecaps (women's professional hockey) and the Twin Cities Titans (men's semipro football), urged the students at Northwestern to consider pursuing chiropractic sports medicine after graduating.
NYCC Dedicates Foot Levelers Biomechanics Research Laboratory
Kent Greenawalt, president and CEO of Foot Levelers, and Dr. Frank J. Nicchi, president of New York Chiropractic College (NYCC), met recently on the NYCC campus to dedicate the Foot Levelers Biomechanics Research Laboratory. Foot Levelers provided funding for equipment and research.
"Foot Levelers' unwavering support of chiropractic and its commitment to ongoing research has once again been demonstrated through this generous contribution," said Dr. Nicchi. Foot Levelers' contribution has enabled what is the nation's first biomechanical laboratory in a chiropractic setting.
Research will address how Foot Levelers' orthotics "facilitate proprioceptive feedback pathways and alleviate pain in individuals who suffer from various musculoskeletal pain disorders" said Dr. Jeanmarie Burke, NYCC dean of basic sciences and research, adding that the new laboratory also will provide the opportunity to objectively measure clinical changes that accompany neuromuscular disabilities and orthopedic conditions.
"Only when research is used to help treat patients more competently and is incorporated into examinations does it find its true value," stated Greenawalt, who views the laboratory as "an unparalleled opportunity to help fund important research that has the potential to help all doctors of chiropractic."
SOTO-USA Joins the American Alliance of TMD Organizations
In November, the Sacro Occipital Technique Organization (SOTO), the only chiropractic member of the American Alliance of TMD Organizations, joined the alliance at a research study group at Tufts University, School of Dental Medicine, Craniofacial Pain and Headache Center. The alliance, whose other 10 members are primarily dental related, represents approximately 17,000 practitioners nationwide who have expertise and interest in the treatment of temporomandibular and/or craniomandibular disorders (TMD/CMD).
Dr. Noshir Mehta of Tufts University led the study group and focused on the development of a collaborative research direction among the various dental organizations treating TMD. Also discussed at the meeting were issues of funding from NIH/NIDCR for various studies, as well as protocols for multi-organizational clinical research in orofacial pain and TMD.
"It was fascinating from a chiropractic perspective how our allied practitioners and researchers saw chiropractic in such a positive light," said Charles Blum, DC, president of SOTO-USA. There was understanding amongst this group that there are ascending postural factors that can affect dental occlusion and TM condylar position, and that dental occlusion and TM condylar position also can have a descending affect on postural factors, such as forward head posture. Interestingly, when treatment was discussed, invariably chiropractors were part of this co-treatment model."
Some doctors thrive in a personality-based clinic and have a loyal following no matter what services or equipment they offer, but for most chiropractic offices who are trying to grow and expand, new equipment purchases help us stay relevant and continue to service our client base in the best, most up-to-date manner possible. So, regarding equipment purchasing: should you lease, get a bank loan, or pay cash?
Some pundits say that the upcoming presidential and congressional races, and many local races, might be the most consequential in our country’s history. We do not have the choice of sitting on the sidelines and hoping our patients will carry our water. Unlike other medical professions such as physical therapists, podiatrists, nurses, etc., the health care class (AMA) will not protect us. We must be in the game.
The most common condition affecting the shoulder is rotator-cuff disease. From acute tears to chronic tendinopathy, it’s common and needs a thorough workup. In fact, even asymptomatic shoulders can have full-thickness rotator-cuff rears in up to 40% of instances. Let’s look at additional conditions that can present to the office with weakness, loss of motion and pain in the shoulder beyond rotator-cuff tears.
