The use of spinal manipulation to treat an acute on field athletic injury: a case report.

This case describes the utilization of spinal manipulative therapy for an acute athletic injury during a Taekwondo competition. During the tournament, an athlete had a sudden, non-traumatic, ballistic movement of the cervical spine. This resulted in the patient having a locked cervical spine with limited active motion in all directions. The attending chiropractor assessed the athlete, and deemed manipulation was appropriate. After the manipulation, the athlete's range of motion was returned and was able to finish the match. Spinal manipulation has multiple positive outcomes for an athlete with an acute injury including the increase of range of motion, decrease in pain and the relaxation of hypertonic muscles. However, there should be some caution when utilizing manipulation during an event. In the article the authors propose four criteria that should be met before utilizing manipulation for an acute, in competition, athletic injury. These include the lack of red flags, limited time for the intervention, preexisting doctor-patient relationship and the athlete has experience receiving spinal manipulation. Clinicians should be aware that manipulation may be an effective tool to treat an acute in competition athletic injury. The criteria set out in the article may help a practitioner decide if manipulation is a good option for them.