The Benefits of Diagnostic Ultrasound for Chiropractors

We all know how painful sore joints and muscles can be. Yes, we may be able to work despite the pain but that doesn’t make it pleasurable. Thankfully, chiropractors are able to help alleviate the pain and make it possible to get back to one’s normal routine.

Chiropractic treatment, like many other aspects of the medical field, is always evolving and improving, thanks to medical advancements. One such improvement is the use of a diagnostic ultrasound or Point of Care, for bedside procedures. By using diagnostic ultrasounds, the doctor can get a more thorough assessment of the cause and the problem, then design an approach. This type of ultrasound is often portable, thus providing real-time diagnosis when used at the site of a sporting event, vehicular accident or other non-office scenario.

If you are considering adding a diagnostic ultrasound to your chiropractic practice but are unsure as to its practicality, then consider some of these additional advantages to the ultrasound machine. For instance, the diagnostic ultrasound is perfect for determining the following:

• Excessive fluid in hip joints among children
• Hernias
• Hip dislocations among infants
• Inflammation or fluid (effusions) within the bursae and joints
• Issues with the Achilles tendon as well as other tendons throughout the body
• Ligament tears and sprains
• Muscle tears, masses, or fluid collections
• Neck muscle abnormalities in infants with torticollis (neck twisting)
• Nerve entrapments (such as carpal tunnel syndrome)

In addition to these many uses, there has also been research showing that diagnostic ultrasound can be used in determining the amount of damage in shoulder, elbow, wrists, hips, knees, feet and ankles.

With so many uses, having a diagnostic ultrasound is a practical addition to any office. As there are several companies – Mindray, Chison, SonoSite, and GE to name a few –  which make them and they each have different features, you want to make the best investment of your money. So how do you select the right one for your practice? Here are some tips to help.

• If your budget allows, systems that include compound imaging will allow you to see multiple directions at once, see tissue damage more easily and will reduce artifacts in the image. In a standard ultrasound, you will only be able to see in one direction.
• Select a machine that has speckle reduction so that darker areas of the image are clearer and tissue definition is more enhanced.
• If you use needles as part of your approach, then consider an ultrasound that includes needles visualization.
• Depending on your practice needs, or perhaps you are thinking to expand your service potential, consider a portable system that can be used from room to room and simply plugged into a laptop.
• As many chiropractic visits involve the spine, you may wish to purchase a machine that works with a low-frequency probe, as these can penetrate deeper than high frequency ones.

Having not just an ultrasound, but the right diagnostic ultrasound for your office is important. If you have questions about a particular type of diagnostic ultrasound system, give National Ultrasound a call and let one of our team members help you make your practice better than ever.