Joints can make different noises.
Some are serious and some are not. There are three general causes
for these joint noises, which include degenerative changes in
the joint, tendon snapping and cavitations of the joint.
Facet
osteoarthritis
The facet joint are the flat surfaced
joints at the back of the vertebrae- one on each side. The superior
part of the joint aligns with the inferior part of the joint.
As a consequence of the natural ageing process, or following trauma
or disease in the joint, they tend to settle a bit closer together,
which causes their alignment to change. This leads to osteoarthritis
(degenerative arthritis) which causes the breakdown of cartilage
between the facet joints.
The facet joint also has fluid lubricating the
joint. The combination of cartilage and fluid in the facet joint
allows it to move with little friction. However, facet joint arthritis
causes the cartilage to breakdown and there is more friction when
the joint moves. The patient loses motion and as they get stiffer
they have more back pain. Typically, the low back pain is most
pronounced first thing in the morning, throughout the day, normal
movement causes fluid to build up in the joint and it becomes
better lubricated, which decreases the pain. Later in the day
the pain typically becomes worse again as more stress is applied
across the joint.
The friction across the joint during movement
causes crunching and crackling noises, generally termed crepitation.
Snapping
tendon
The snapping sensation results from
the movement of a muscle or tendon (the tough, fibrous tissue
that connects muscle to bone) over a bony structure. Generally
there will be inflammation- causing tendonitis which will cause
painful snapping. Where there are changes in the joint causing
marked joint looseness then tendon snapping becomes more pronounced.
Common locations for tendon snapping include; the ankle, knee,
hip, wrist and shoulder.
In the hip, the most common site is at the outer
side where a band of connective tissue passes over the broad,
flat portion of the thighbone.
When the hip is straight, the band is behind the
trochanter. When the hip bends, the band moves over the trochanter
so that it is front of it. The band is always tight, like stretched
rubber band. Because the trochanter juts out slightly, the movement
of the band across it creates the snap you hear. Eventually, this
could lead to hip bursitis. Bursitis is thickening and inflammation
of the bursa, a fluid-filled sac that allows the muscle to move
smoothly over bone.
|
Joint
cavitation
Some people learn how to “pop their
knuckles.” By pushing or pulling a joint in a certain way, an
air bubble can suddenly appear in the joint with a “pop”. Once
the bubble is there the joint cannot be popped again until the
air has been reabsorbed. This is known as cavitation of the joint.
Joint cavitation can occur in most of the joints in the body and
is particularly prominent in the facet joint of the spine.
Why
does the spine crack during chiropractic treatment?
Treatment of spinal conditions by chiropractic
manipulation of the joints uses the phenomenon of joint cavitation
to introduce motion into stiff joints and thus reduce the pain
caused by such conditions.
When person experiences trauma to the spine, particular
joints can become unstable leading to joint looseness while neighbouring
joints become very stiff to compensate for this instability.
The unstable joints are able to cavitate with
bending and rotational movements of the spine, which leads to
joint sound further instability of the joint. Chiropractic manipulation
of the neighbouring stiff joints can help return normal mobility
to these joints which in turn will help reverse the looseness
in the unstable joints as the stresses on them are reduced. This
reduces the likelihood of self-induced joint popping.
Chiropractic
Treatment
If you are interested in how chiropractic
manipulation could help stop your joints popping, do not hesitate
to ask your chiropractor.
|