Got hurt and not sure how bad it is? That is what this visit is for. A personal injury evaluation looks at what the accident did to your body and puts it on paper. Crash, fall, something at work. Different causes, same first question. Where is the damage, and how deep does it go.
We see people who feel fine for a day, then can barely turn their head the next. We see people who knew right away. Both get the same careful look.
It is not a quick crack and go. The evaluation is a full assessment of your muscles, joints, and nerves after an injury. Point of it is finding the source of the pain, not just chasing the spot that hurts.
Sprains. Strains. Whiplash. The aches that creep in after a fall or a wreck. We sort out what is actually wrong before anyone talks treatment. For the broader clinical picture of what a chiropractic evaluation involves, the American Chiropractic Association lays it out.
First visit runs about 30 minutes. Mostly questions and hands-on checks.
Dr. Brockway starts with the story. How it happened. What hurts. What you could do last week that you cannot do now. Then the physical exam. Posture, reflexes, muscle strength. How far you move and where it stops.
There is also DynaROM, a test most offices skip. It measures how your muscles and spine respond while you move, and records it. So a soft tissue injury that looks normal on a standard exam still shows up in the data.
If imaging is warranted, we refer out for X-rays or an MRI and review the films before anything else. No adjustment until that imaging is read. For adults and older kids, that rule holds. You deserve to know what you are dealing with first. If care follows, here is what to expect from a chiropractic adjustment.
Most of what walks in is soft tissue. Pulled muscles, strained ligaments, the deep ache that lingers. Whiplash too, though neck and crash cases often run their own path. More on neck pain and whiplash on its own page, and car accident chiropractic care if a vehicle was involved.
Falls. Lifting injuries on the job. joint and muscle pain that flared after the incident and never settled. We look at all of it.
One honest note. Some injuries are emergencies, not chiropractic cases. Loss of bladder or bowel control. Trouble breathing. A limb that will not move. That is the ER, right now. We will tell you straight if what you have needs a hospital instead of us.
Sooner than you think. General guidance is not to wait more than two or three days.
Two reasons. One, early care tends to heal cleaner. Two, the record. An evaluation done right after the injury ties what you feel to what happened. Wait a few weeks and that link blurs, for you and for anyone reading the file later.
Symptoms hide, too. Adrenaline masks a lot. Plenty of people feel okay at the scene and rough by morning. Getting checked early catches what the first day buried.
Here is where we are different. Two tools, and not many offices around here run both.
DynaROM, again. Objective proof of a soft tissue injury, on paper, even when you look fine standing still.
And advanced computer analysis of your X-rays. When imaging is warranted, software measures spinal motion and alignment in fine detail. It flags ligament damage or instability that a routine read can miss. The kind of hidden injury that gets waved off as nothing.
Why that matters so much. Soft tissue and so-called invisible injuries are the hardest to prove. They do not always show on a standard scan. So the record has to carry the weight. Exam findings, the treatment plan, progress notes over time. A clear, honest paper trail.
What we will not do. We do not make legal claims. We do not coach you on settlements or insurance tactics. We document what we find and the care we provide, plainly. Those records go to your attorney or your insurer if and when you say so. Your case, your call.
A few things help.
Skip painkillers and muscle relaxants right before you come in. They mask symptoms and make the real problem harder to find. Wear loose, comfortable clothes you can move in. Bring the details of the incident. The date, what happened, any imaging or records you already have.
That is about it. No special prep beyond showing up able to move and able to talk it through.
Not every injury heals the same. Some bounce back in weeks. Others, the ones in tissue with poor blood supply like cartilage and certain ligaments, take far longer or never fully return to what they were.
The evaluation gives you a real read on which kind you are facing. No sugarcoating. From there we build a plan aimed at lasting relief, working to get what can be corrected, corrected, and managing what cannot.
You leave knowing where you stand. That is the whole point.
Hurt in an accident, a fall, or on the job? Get evaluated before the trail goes cold. Dr. Brockway and the team will examine you, document it clearly, and tell you honestly what comes next.
Glendale Chiropractic
425 S. Cherry St., Suite 307, Denver
720-889-1659
Monday through Thursday, 9:00 AM to 12:30 PM and 2:30 to 6:00 PM. Closed Friday through Sunday.
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Call 720-889-1659 to schedule your evaluation.