In addition to the adjustment, your chiropractor can do much more to help relieve specific types of pain or conditions while also improving how you move and function. One common tool is soft tissue therapy, which can help you with your pain, function, and overall musculoskeletal health.

At Chiro & Sports Med the chiropractors apply soft tissue techniques by using their hands to check the texture, tightness, and mobility of the soft tissue. The most common soft tissue technique used is Active Release Technique (ART). This technique is a type of soft tissue therapy that helps relieve tight muscles and nerve trigger points. It also greatly reduces joint stress or muscular pains. ART uses the examiner’s hands to apply the technique.

ART is most commonly used to treat conditions related to adhesions or scar tissue in overused muscles. This technique can help patients with acute, chronic, overuse, repetitive strain injuries and postoperative cases of all types. As adhesions build up, muscles become shorter and weaker. Then the motion of muscles and joints are altered, nerves can be compressed. As a result, tissues suffer from the decreased blood supply, pain, and poor mobility. The goal of ART is to restore the smooth movement of tissues. Thus, to release any trapped nerves or blood vessels.

In the first three levels of ART treatment, movement of your tissue is done by your chiropractor. Using hand pressure, we work to remove or break up the fibrous adhesions, with the stretching motions, generally in the direction of venous and lymphatic flow. In level four, however, ART requires you to actively move the affected tissue in prescribed ways while your chiropractor applies a specific tension.