THE ART OF THE PHYSICAL EVALUATION

By Alexander C. Frank, DC, DACNB, FABES

My shoulder hurts me! Why isn’t that sufficient enough for you to know what is wrong with me and how to get me better!?

“Well, it is vital to know what you feel is hurting, but I also want to know the why.” Just as cops don’t ask drunk drivers to evaluate their own ability to drive/function, a thorough evaluation will objectively look for areas of weakness/disharmony/imbalances that may lead to dysfunction between your nervous muscular skeletal systems. A thorough evaluation will assess for disruptions between these systems to determine a causative agent(s) behind issues such as shoulder pain, back pain, unsteadiness/imbalance, headaches, migraines, slowing of movements, and other less-than states. A tailored treatment plan can then be employed to improve the integrity of tissues/systems that were determined to be functioning less-than optimally… all without the use of drugs.

Sara 71
My right shoulder kills me. I was in a car accident which caused neck and shoulder injuries. They said I might have had a concussion too. I went to physical therapy and had chiropractic treatments that included stretching my neck; this made my pain worse. I then went to another chiropractor and he suggested I do out-of-pocket testing that turned out to be of no value. I was resigned to not playing cards, doing yard work, or living my life as I did prior to my car accident; I was just going to suffer until the end. A friend pushed me to see Dr. Frank. What is he going to do differently than these other doctors? Well to start, we discussed my records that he had reviewed prior to my office visit. How refreshing! He then went into what I call his examination “ballet” in which he utilized a variety of neurological tools: pinwheels with sharp teeth, tuning forks, striped scarfs that he brought past my eyes [that made me feel dizzy], and much more.

“Follow/track my finger with just your eyes” asked Dr. Frank. So, I did that [or so I thought]. “Okay, Mary, let’s try that again, but this time, do not move your jaw”. Wait! What? My jaw was moving when I moved my eyes?! On to more evaluating: I had to touch my finger the tip to my the tip of my nose with my eyes closed, balance with my feet close together and my eyes closed; now do that but with my chin tucked to my chest, and more. What an array of tests! [thankfully I had not been drinking, lol], “Okay, Mary, now raise your right (bad) shoulder/arm up like you are waving good bye”. I tried to lift my shoulder but had so much pain after just a bit of movement. “Okay Mary,” he said,” Now I want you to try that again, but with your left arm, and while you are looking into this mirror.” I looked at him with this confused/disbelieving/you have to be kidding me glance as he continued to direct me to look into the mirror and perform multiple arms raises. “Trust me, your brain thinks the reflection is your right [bad] arm”, he said. “Okay, now please try raising your right shoulder again.” That time to my disbelief I was able to raise my shoulder almost all the way up, with more anticipated pain than actual pain. How can this be? I saw this exacerbated look come over his face as he asked, “They treated your neck and shoulder, but did anyone treat your brain?” No was my reply, because my shoulder hurt.

About Dr. Frank
Dr. Frank understands that no two people are quite alike, and as such, no two injuries or pains manifest themselves identically. That’s why I offer a diverse range of neurological techniques, chiropractic adjusting techniques, treatments, therapies, along with nutritional support, to better assist you and your loved ones on the road to optimal health & maximum potential.

Dr. Alexander Charles Frank is the only Board Certified Chiropractic Neurologist in the North Central Florida area. He also holds a fellowship in Electrodiagnostic Specialties. Current course works includes Fellowship studies in Traumatic Brain Injury Rehabilitation, Vestibular and Concussion Rehabilitation, Childhood Developmental Disorders, and more.

Dr. Frank graduated Cum Lauder from Life Chiropractic College West. He has interned and trained with the top chiropractic neurologists and functional medicine specialists in the world. in order to manage the most complicated of health issues.

Dr. Frank’s comprehensive evaluations assess for the root cause(s) of his client’s health issues. Treatment plans are then tailored to an individual’s specific needs. Dr. Frank’s comprehensive evaluations are based on the most advanced clinical neuroscientific research of today. In addition, he utilizes the most state-of-the-art diagnostics available that help to find the “weak links in the chain”. Cutting-edge rehabilitative programs are then tailored to each individual’s specific needs.

To Schedule your appointment with Dr. Frank, please call the Florida Functional Neurology Group at (352) 571-5155.