William Cockburn, D.C., B.C.F.E.
What would appear to be one of the most obvious devices, was actually one of the very last to be perfected,. range of motion inclinometry.
I had the most wonderful opportunity to be invited to Portland Oregon by John Gerhardt, MD, one of the contributing authors to the range of motion segment of the AMA Guides. Dr. Gerhardt is an incredible human being, and I was so honored to be invited for a day of personal training in inclinometry.
I began to think about the missing link in the "wrap". If I had a bone out of alignment on an x-ray which was causing high electrical activity in a paraspinal muscle group, and observable heat was measured in the pathologic region of the spine in question, wouldn't a decrease in range of motion be consistent with the vertebral subluxation complex?
I had to have one! The software amazed me. It spoke to you for positioning the patient. It wouldn't allow a test to be saved or printed unless it was deemed reliable, and then it automatically produced a report based on the AMA Guides. I was in heaven.
Using these devices over the years has given me a wonderful opportunity to view the living dynamic essentials of the vertebral subluxation complex and its change or lack of change through chiropractic care.
In this world of evolving managed care, perhaps the financial incentives some have used in the past will be replaced with the determined utilization of these devices where they fit best:
Improved patient diagnosis and care
Decreasing cost of said care and validating the chiropractic profession, objectively, quantitatively - once and for all!