Technique Skills in Chiropractic

by David Byfield, DC

Technique Skills in Chiropractic covers many common diversified adjustive techniques for all regions of the spine and pelvis using a structured skill-based methodology.

The basic skills required in order to carry out manipulative procedures safely and effectively are clearly presented, with photographs supporting descriptions of techniques and online video clips showing how to perform them.

One of the key aspects of this text is the sequential and structured approach to manual skill learning from basic posture to more complex movement patterns to complete the overall manipulative/adjustive procedure.

Dr. Byfield graduated from the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College, Toronto, Canada in 1979 and has since been in private practice and chiropractic education. He is currently a Principal Lecturer, Head of the Chiropractic Division in the Department of Professional Education and Service Delivery, the Faculty of Health, Sport & Science and Head of the Welsh Institute of Chiropractic at the University of Glamorgan.

Order now from Amazon.

Kiso Method: Structural Alignment For Chiropractors

by Craig Zion Cain, DC

These two volumes contain updated information on the Kiso Healing method, which was originally created for chiropractors but has been also adapted to other healing practitioners.

There are two manuals both under the heading of Kiso Method Structural Alignment. Manual one focuses on the lumbar spine, pelvis and thoracic spine, while manual two delves into the cervical spine and cranio-sacral region. They contain information on both non force and force techniques.

According to the author, the Kiso Method “has a very specific form of analysis and adjusting. The concepts are fresh and original. It’s designed to help those patients with disc injuries, with pain in either the sciatic nerve or brachial nerve or for those patients suffering from chronic or acute muscle spasm.”

Although not widely reviewed, two doctors of chiropractic gave the book high marks on Amazon. One stated: “the low back portion of the Kiso Method is so easy to learn and easy to use that I can’t believe all chiropractors in every school in America have not learned this technique. My patients love it and it’s so subtle in the way it feels but powerful in its effect on my patients.”

The other noted: “The Kiso method is very useful to know when treating patients with spinal problems causing neck, shoulder and back pain as well as numbness and tingling of the limbs. … Although gentle, the results are very powerful and in most cases improvement is instantaneous.”

The author is the founder of Kiso Method and a graduate of Palmer West. While an intern at the college in 1987, he discovered the first part of the Kiso Method by accident. While working on a patient using the knee chest table, he discovered that having the patient on their knees and allowing the patient to increase the lordodic curve in the lumbar spine, allowed the lumbar and sacral vertebrae to be adjusted with very light force. It was eight years later after studying bodywork therapies for two years in Japan, that Dr. Cain started to discover the cervical portion of the Kiso Method.

Both manuals were released in Dec. 2011.

Buy on Amazon.com

Low Back Pain: Mechanism, Diagnosis and Treatment

by James M. Cox

To be released this month, the seventh edition of this textbook is built on the peer-reviewed literature and research studies in the diagnosis and treatment of low back and radicular pain, focusing on the nonsurgical chiropractic adjusting methods.

The book contains detailed discussion of the biomechanics of the spine involved in low back pain; the neurophysiology and pathology of the intervertebral disc and neural tissues in pain production, emphasizing compressive and chemical etiology of nerve pain; chiropractic spinal manipulation compared to medical care and surgery of back and radicular pain for clinical outcomes and cost of care; and rehabilitation of the back pain patient and its necessity in clinical management.

New chapters in the seventh edition cover nutritional factors in the treatment of intervertebral disc degeneration and osteopenia and osteoporosis of bone; treatment for back pain in the pregnant female patient with flexion distraction spinal adjustments; updated diagnosis and treatment of fibromyalgia; physiological therapeutics used in general chiropractic clinical practice in spinal care; the history and evolution of Cox flexion distraction chiropractic spinal manipulation; and diagnostic testing from physical examination, diagnostic imaging, laboratory testing, and their combined input to correct diagnosis of the back pain patient.

Order now from Amazon

Enzymes: The Key to Health

by Howard F. Loomis, DC

Already familiar to readers of The Chiropractic Journal and other chiropractic publications, author Howard F. Loomis, DC, demonstrates his impressive expertise in the fields of nutrition and enzyme deficiency with this volume.

The book explores the basic principles of enzymes, focusing on their nature and clinical applications. Opening with an introduction suitable both for practitioners and lay readers, Loomis explains the role of enzymes and the use of plant enzymes as a vital dietary component.

Of particular importance to DCs and other wellness practitioners are his chapters on the consequences of poor digestion and the role of plant enzyme formulations in addressing a wide variety of health issues. His emphasis on nutrition rather than drugs makes the book especially valuable for chiropractic patients. “A global trend is in the making that is propelling millions of people away from traditional allopathic solutions and toward wellness and holism,” he states in the book.

The book has won high praise from chiropractic and medical practitioners, nutritionists, and lay readers, earning 4.7 out of 5 stars on Amazon.com. “Dr. Loomis … unravels the mysteries of the ‘lost chords’ of healing,” stated Brice E. Vickery, DC.

Arthur David, Jr., MD, notes in the book’s foreword: “Dr. Loomis has provided me with an entirely new grasp of the subject. Not only does he share information that markedly enhances one’s understanding of biochemistry, but he provides the interested clinician with a wonderful therapeutic tool to significantly enhance his clinical efficacy… Dr. Loomis has done a wonderful job of organizing (the information), presenting it in a clear and understandable manner, and making it clinically applicable.”

Order now, new or used, from Amazon

Basic Clinical Massage Therapy

by James H. Clay and David M. Pounds

Rated 4.7 out of 5 stars, there’s little direct information on chiropractic in this volume, but it’s popular among chiropractors who incorporate massage therapy into their practices.In fact, it’s one of the three books that rank highest in the Alternative Medicine – Chiropractic category on Amazon.com.

The second edition of this book (full title: “Basic Clinical Massage Therapy: Integrating Anatomy and Treatment”) is part of the LWW Massage Therapy and Bodywork Educational Series and was published in 2008 by Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.

The text familiarizes students with individual muscles and muscle systems and demonstrates basic clinical massage therapy techniques. More than 550 full-color illustrations of internal structures are embedded into photographs of live models to show each muscle or muscle group, surrounding structures, surface landmarks, and the therapist’s hands.

Readers see clearly which muscle is being worked, where it is, where it’s attached, how it can be accessed manually, what problems it can cause, and how treatment techniques are performed. This edition features improved illustrations of draping and includes palpation for each muscle.

An accompanying Real Bodywork DVD includes video demonstrations of massage techniques from the book.

“Muscles: Testing and Function, with Posture and Pain”

by “Florence Peterson Kendall, et.al.”

This is another of the top-rated books in the Alternative Medicine – Chiropractic category on Amazon.com that doesn’t focus specifically on the profession. The fifth edition of this renowned classic was published in 2005 and continues to win rave reviews from DCs and others who utilize muscle testing. It provides unparalleled coverage of manual muscle testing, plus evaluation and treatment of faulty and painful postural conditions.

Rated 4.4 out of 5 stars, this updated edition is completely reorganized and has new, expanded treatment and exercise sections in each chapter. Other features include a new section on post-polio syndrome, additional case studies comparing Guillain-Barré to polio muscle tests, a new full-color design, and a first-of-its-kind chart of upper extremity articulations.

A bonus Primal Anatomy CD-ROM contains a three-dimensional interactive model of the human body. Readers can rotate the model and add or subtract layers of anatomy to strengthen their knowledge.

Order now from amazon.com.

Functional Neurology for Practitioners of Manual Medicine

by Randy W. Beck, DC, PhD

NOTE: This book is scheduled for release on Oct. 11 and is available for pre-order.

“Functional Neurology for Practitioners of Manual Medicine” takes the reader from the embryonic beginnings of the nervous system, through the biochemistry of receptor activation and on to the functional systems of the nervous system.

Concepts, relationships, and scientific mechanisms of the nervous system function are covered, and this aids the practitioner in developing his or her clinical approach to a wide variety of patient presentations. The text is fully referenced, which allows the reader to immediately apply the concepts to practice situations. New for this edition are new chapters on pain (including headache) and theoretical evidence, plus extensive electronic resources supporting the text.

Contains a detailed overview of the concepts relating to our understanding of the development of emotion to demonstrate the link between physical health and the mind.

In Perth, Australia Dr. Randy Beck is Senior Lecturer in Clinical Diagnosis and Neurology on the Faculty of Health Sciences at Murdoch University, and Director of the Institute of Functional Neuroscience. He’s also Associate Professor, Clinical Neurology at the Carrick Institute for Graduate Studies in Florida.

Dr. Beck graduated in 1984 from the University of Western Ontario, and from the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College in Toronto in 1988.

Order now from Amazon.com