The ultimate goal of care is to stop pain and teach skills to prevent the return of discomfort.

When a patient presents in pain, treatment is prescribed in phases with different goals. The success of treatment is tied to following the recommended treatment frequency for in office care as well as patient compliance to home stretching and exercise with avoidance of aggravating activity.

Occurring in different phases, treatment in general can be thought of as having a building cumulative effect.

  • In the initial active phase (trial period), this effect is best achieved by three treatments/adjustments per week in most cases.
  • During the middle resolving period (the conclusion of active care), this building effect is best achieved by one to two treatments per week in most cases.
  • Completion of initial two phases of care results in the end of active care and patient discharge.

After discharge, depending on the history of complaints, patients often choose one of two follow up options.