26/09/2024
NEW LITERATURE REVIEW HIGHLIGHTS HVLA IMPACTS ON FACET JOINT SPACE AND STIFFNESS. A newly published systematic review of the literature has concluded that the application of high velocity, low amplitude (HVLA) manipulation of the spine is likely to result in slight movement of the facet (zygapophyseal) joints as well as giving rise to a measurable change in stiffness immediately following manipulation.
The study, published in Chiropractic and Manual Therapies and authored by an international, multidisciplinary team of 14 experts, found that there was very little by way of credible literature on the subject of immediate anatomical or postural changes in response to manually applied HVLA manipulation, with 20 articles (10 controlled studies and 10 uncontrolled studies) being selected for review.
The reviewed studies covered a range of parameters with only 8 articles being considered credible in terms of methodology and outcomes. These indicated that following HVLA manipulation (alone and not combined with any other therapeutic intervention), lumbar facet joint space increased and spinal stiffness reduced.
The authors concluded that these two observable changes should form the basis of future research.
Reference: Young, K.J., Leboeuf-Yde, C., Gorrell, L. et al. Mechanisms of manipulation: a systematic review of the literature on immediate anatomical structural or positional changes in response to manually delivered high-velocity, low-amplitude spinal manipulation. Chiropr Man Therap 32, 28 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12998-024-00549-w
