Introduction
Do you notice your shoes wear strangely on one shoe than the other? Do you find that your knees hurt? Well, you may have one leg shorter than the other.
Definition
one leg's being shorter than the other
Description
11% of people reportedly have a short leg.
Having a short leg is like driving a car with two different sized tires on the rear axle. It throws your back out.
A short leg can be due to a variety of situations that the doctor may address first before addressing your short leg. We at Minster Chiropractic Center will determine if the short leg is truly due to structure. If it is, you will likely be fitted with a heel lift to correct the inequality. If the inequality is larger, you may need to add a little at a time to allow your spine to adjust. In addition to correcting the difference, your chiropractic physician will align your spine with spinal manipulation.
short leg
corrected short leg
Examination
A thorough, clinical examination that may include imaging is important to your short leg diagnosis and management.
Lumbar Spine Exam Description
Treatment
In office, Minster Chiropractic Center uses Cox Technic Flexion Distraction and Decompression to widen the canal space, drop the intradiscal pressure and increase the disc height to relieve any pain provoked by your short leg.
You will welcome the Cox Technic manipulation that gently "pulls you apart," as many patients describe the treatment or say they need. Depending on the severity of your pain and symptoms, gentler Protocol I may be applied until 50% relief of pain or more restoring Protocol II may be applied to guide your relief.
Goal of Cox Technic for pain relief
This is an animation of the goal of Cox Technic
Flexion-Distraction and Decompression: reduced irritation of spinal elements
enough to relieve pain and help you regain your quality of life. The amount of
decrease in size of the herniated disc necessary for pain relief varies from 0%
to 100% for each individual patient.
Cox Technic Protocol I - for pain that extends below the knee
Cox Technic Protocol II - for pain that is in the low back and stays above the knee
In office adjunctive care may hasten your recovery.
At Home Care
At home, if your short leg is bothering your spine, you may want to avoid sitting for long periods of time, take nutritional supplements that help rebuild disc cartilage, wear any special shoe inserts as recommended, do exercises that strengthen your spine, sleep on a supportive mattress, sit in an ergonomically designed chair, and modify your daily activities as needed.
Contact Minster Chiropractic Center for management of your short leg.