Spine Specialist Charlotte NC | Imaging-Credentialed Structural Spine Care | Clear Life Scoliosis

Clinical content by Dr. Justin Dick, DC (ORCID 0009-0001-2794-2159) · Clear Life Scoliosis and Chiropractic Center, Charlotte, NC · Last reviewed November 11, 2026

Clear Life Scoliosis and Chiropractic Center in Charlotte, NC evaluates and treats spinal problems that have not settled with rest, medication, or general care: scoliosis in children and adults, chronic neck and low back pain, sciatica, arm pain from cervical discs, posture-related neck strain, and spinal injury after car accidents. Care starts with a structured exam and, when it will change a decision, standing radiographs read by a clinician who holds imaging credentials.

I am Dr. Justin Dick, DC. I am a CLEAR Scoliosis Institute Senior Fellow and serve on its Board of Directors, hold CNMT and ARRT(N)(CT) imaging credentials, and have published peer-reviewed research indexed in PubMed (ORCID 0009-0001-2794-2159). This page explains what we treat, what the evidence supports for each condition, and when I refer to a surgeon or physician.

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Who We See

Most patients at our Charlotte office fall into four groups. Children and teens with scoliosis whose families want an evaluation and a plan during growth. Adults with scoliosis, sagittal imbalance, or degenerative curves who have pain or are losing height and posture. Adults with neck pain, low back pain, sciatica, or arm pain from disc or joint problems. People injured in motor vehicle collisions, covered under our personal injury program.

What Structural Spine Care Means Here

Structural care means measuring alignment and motion, treating the mechanical problem, and re-measuring. It does not mean every finding on an image is the cause of pain. Brinjikji and colleagues pooled 33 studies of 3,110 people without symptoms and found disc degeneration in 37 percent at age 20 and 96 percent at age 80, so an MRI finding has to match the history and exam before it guides care. My post on MRI findings in people without pain covers this. For posture and alignment, Glassman and colleagues showed in 752 adults with spinal deformity that pain and function worsen as the trunk shifts forward over the pelvis, which is why standing films and sagittal measurements are part of adult evaluations.

What the Evidence Supports, by Condition

Sciatica from a disc. Santilli and colleagues randomized 102 people with acute back pain and sciatica from disc protrusion to active or simulated spinal manipulation. Freedom from radiating pain occurred in 55 percent against 20 percent. In McMorland's 40-patient pilot of people who had failed at least three months of nonsurgical care, 60 percent of those treated with manipulation benefited to the same degree as with surgery. Fernandez's review of 12 trials found surgery better than nonsurgical care for disc herniation only in the short term. Progressive weakness or bowel or bladder change needs surgical evaluation the same day. See my MRI shows a herniated disc.

Arm pain from a cervical disc. In Radhakrishnan's population study of 561 people with cervical radiculopathy, 90 percent were asymptomatic or only mildly limited at about five years. Engquist's trial found surgery plus physiotherapy did not improve disability or arm pain at two years compared with physiotherapy alone. See pinched nerve vs herniated disc.

Loss of neck curve and forward head posture. Harrison and colleagues reported a 14.2° improvement in cervical lordosis with manipulation and extension traction over about nine weeks in 30 patients against 24 controls. It was a nonrandomized trial by the method's developers, and no randomized trial has shown curve restoration reduces pain more than care that does not target the curve. I tell patients that directly. See Chiropractic BioPhysics in Charlotte and tech neck.

Scoliosis. Bracing during growth and scoliosis-specific exercise have the supporting evidence for curve control; our scoliosis care program, ScoliBrace, and SpineCor pages cover each option and its limits.

Your First Visit

The first visit includes a history focused on what has and has not helped, a neurological and orthopedic exam, posture and motion assessment, and a review of any prior imaging. New radiographs are taken only when they will change a decision, standing when alignment is the question, with collimation and positioning to limit dose. You leave with a written explanation of findings, what the evidence supports for your condition, the expected time frame, and the measurements we will use to decide whether care is working. If the findings call for MRI, a physician, or a surgeon, that referral happens at the first visit.

When I Refer

Progressive weakness, numbness in the groin, bowel or bladder change, fever with back pain, unexplained weight loss, night pain that does not ease with position, signs of spinal cord compression, and curves outside the range that conservative care can address are referred to the appropriate physician or surgeon. Our second opinion page explains how we coordinate.

How Dr. Justin Dick, DC Practices at Clear Life

Care at our Charlotte office is cash-based for scoliosis and general spine patients; personal injury patients are treated on a lien basis. Every plan has measurable goals and a re-assessment point. I do not promise cures or permanent correction, and I state the evidence level for what I recommend. My published case reports and cross-sectional study are listed below with their limits.

Comparison

Research and Evidence

Evidence tiering: Santilli and Engquist are randomized trials; McMorland a small randomized pilot; Fernandez a systematic review of trials; Radhakrishnan a population cohort; Brinjikji a systematic review of cross-sectional studies; Glassman a retrospective database analysis; Harrison a nonrandomized trial by the method's developers. Descriptions of how our office works are practice policy, not evidence.

My published work: A Retrospective Cross-Sectional Analysis of Abnormal Cervical Mechanics in Patients With Scoliosis (Cureus, 2025, PMID 41018459); Radiographic Sagittal Alignment and Neurological Changes Following Conservative Cervical Structural Rehabilitation After Motor Vehicle Collision in a Patient With Pre-existing Scoliosis: A Case Report (Cureus, 2026, PMID 41783554); Refractory Lumbar Pain Following Motor Vehicle Collision in a Geriatric Patient With Prior Lumbar Surgery (Cureus, 2026, PMID 41694169); Radiographic Sagittal Alignment and Kinetic Chain Alterations in Geriatric Patients With Scoliosis: A Case Series (Cureus, 2026, PMID 42037873); Reduction of Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis: A 13-Month Follow-Up (Cureus, 2025, PMID 40062184); Reduction of Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis Utilizing the Labyrinthine Righting Reflex: A Case Report (Cureus, 2026, PMID 41685001); A Non-surgical Multimodal Approach to Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (Lenke 5C) Using an Intensive Two-Week CLEAR Institute Protocol: A Report of Two Cases (Cureus, 2026, PMID 41640942). These are case reports, a case series, and a retrospective cross-sectional study. They describe outcomes in specific patients and cannot establish that a treatment works in general. The full list is on my research page.

References

1. Brinjikji W, Luetmer PH, Comstock B, et al. Systematic literature review of imaging features of spinal degeneration in asymptomatic populations. AJNR Am J Neuroradiol. 2015;36(4):811-6. doi:10.3174/ajnr.A4173
2. Glassman SD, Bridwell K, Dimar JR, et al. The impact of positive sagittal balance in adult spinal deformity. Spine. 2005;30(18):2024-9. doi:10.1097/01.brs.0000179086.30449.96
3. Santilli V, Beghi E, Finucci S. Chiropractic manipulation in the treatment of acute back pain and sciatica with disc protrusion: a randomized double-blind clinical trial of active and simulated spinal manipulations. Spine J. 2006;6(2):131-7. doi:10.1016/j.spinee.2005.08.001
4. McMorland G, Suter E, Casha S, du Plessis SJ, Hurlbert RJ. Manipulation or microdiskectomy for sciatica? A prospective randomized clinical study. J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 2010;33(8):576-84. doi:10.1016/j.jmpt.2010.08.013
5. Fernandez M, Ferreira ML, Refshauge KM, et al. Surgery or physical activity in the management of sciatica: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Eur Spine J. 2016;25(11):3495-3512. doi:10.1007/s00586-015-4148-y
6. Radhakrishnan K, Litchy WJ, O'Fallon WM, Kurland LT. Epidemiology of cervical radiculopathy. A population-based study from Rochester, Minnesota, 1976 through 1990. Brain. 1994;117(Pt 2):325-35. doi:10.1093/brain/117.2.325
7. Engquist M, Löfgren H, Öberg B, et al. Surgery versus nonsurgical treatment of cervical radiculopathy: a prospective, randomized study comparing surgery plus physiotherapy with physiotherapy alone with a 2-year follow-up. Spine. 2013;38(20):1715-22. doi:10.1097/BRS.0b013e31829ff095
8. Harrison DE, Cailliet R, Harrison DD, Janik TJ, Holland B. A new 3-point bending traction method for restoring cervical lordosis and cervical manipulation: a nonrandomized clinical controlled trial. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2002;83(4):447-53. doi:10.1053/apmr.2002.30916

Frequently Asked Questions

Service Area

Clear Life Scoliosis and Chiropractic Center sees patients from Charlotte NC, Huntersville NC, Ballantyne NC, Matthews NC, Concord NC, Mooresville NC, Rock Hill SC, Fort Mill SC. Families from across the Charlotte region and the South Carolina border communities come to the Rachel Freeman Way office for radiographic scoliosis evaluation with Dr. Justin Dick, DC.

Related Pages

• Scoliosis Care Program
• Personal Injury Program
• Treatment Options
• Chiropractic BioPhysics in Charlotte
• ScoliBrace Charlotte
• SpineCor Charlotte
• Scoliosis Treatment for Adults
• My MRI Shows a Herniated Disc
• Pinched Nerve vs Herniated Disc
• Radiographic Imaging Credentials
• Scoliosis Second Opinion
• Dr. Justin Dick, DC Research

Schedule an Evaluation in Charlotte

If your spine problem has not settled with general care, the next step is a structured exam and the right imaging. Dr. Justin Dick, DC sees patients at our Charlotte office on Rachel Freeman Way.

Schedule Your Evaluation