PulStar® Computerized Spinal Analysis & Therapy
A gentle computerized chiropractic tool for spinal analysis and mobilization.
At My Toronto Chiropractor Clinic in Toronto, Dr. Leslie Horowitz uses the PulStar® system for computerized spinal analysis and gentle mechanical spinal mobilization. The PulStar® is a computerized system designed to assess differences in resistance between spinal segments and deliver controlled mechanical impulses to specific areas of the spine.
The PulStar® is a safe, state-of-the-art, patented, and FDA-approved computerized software system. It is non-invasive and provides both gentle analysis and therapeutic mechanical mobilizations of the spinal joints.
The device does not give off any ionizing radiation.
How PulStar® Works
The system includes a hand-held probe with a a hand-held probe with a two-pronged impulse head that is attached to electronic control sensors that measure tissue compliance and dysfunction between two vertebrae.
The amount of force used to analyze the spine is gentle (10 pounds of pressure during analysis) and can be controlled according to the needs of each patient. This information is recorded into sophisticated analysis software and then displayed as a bar graph.
The scan provides objective data to help determine if and where a given vertebra needs to be mobilized due to reduced motion. It is a full-spine system, meaning the entire spine is analyzed during each session. Research demonstrates that the PulStar® delivers impulses with an impulse duration of under 10 milliseconds and peak forces ranging from 22.2 to a maximum of 155.7 Newtons, depending on settings.
The sophisticated PulStar® chiropractic software provides accurate analyses that are easily understood by both the doctor and the patient, allowing patients to see evidence of their own improvement.
In analysis mode, the PulStar® device showed good to excellent reliability when used by either an experienced or a novice (but trained) examiner.
Normal movement of each individual spinal segment is essential to good spinal function.
When all vertebrae are moving normally, their resistance is fairly equal.
When a vertebra has restricted motion, the probe detects increased resistance, which is displayed in the associated bar graphs.
PulStar® Multiple Impulse Therapy (MIT)
In addition to assessment, the PulStar® can also be used to mobilize specific segments of the spine, using very gentle impulses with the goal of reducing segmental restrictions and pain.
Typically, the doctor uses 10 pounds of force (44.8 Newtons) when treating the neck area and around 20 pounds of force (89.6 Newtons) in the low back.
For comparison, when the neck is adjusted manually, it has been reported that the amount of force can range from 46.8 N to 125 N.
When you are walking, your feet must carry your body weight, and when you are running, your feet must absorb three or four times your weight. Certain sports can place up to 7–10 times your body weight on your feet.
Peak force through the L4-L5 vertebral segment during walking has been reported at around 3.5 times body weight and 2.6 times body weight in the thoracic spine.
The frequency during mobilization can be set anywhere between 2 and 35 Hz (impulses per second). The PulStar® impulses have a duration of approximately 10 milliseconds, which is shorter than the duration of a manual adjustment
The analysis and treatment take less than five minutes.
Benefits of PulStar® Spinal Analysis & Mobilization
- Safe to use on people with osteoporosis, people who do not like or cannot tolerate manual adjustments, and on children
- Very well tolerated. In 13 years of using PulStar®, patients have not reported any side effects after its use
- Objective evidence of increased tissue resistance under the probe, suggesting reduced spinal segmental motion
- Mobilizes specific spinal segments without requiring neck rotations
- No twisting, popping or cracking sounds that occur with manual manipulation of joints
- Can be used to release soft tissues and break up scar tissue or myofascial adhesions
- Significantly reduces paraspinal muscle tone
- May identify intersegmental fixations by identifying significant variance in resistance between consecutive motion segments
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