Chiropractic Review: Spinal Facet Joints and Nerve Structures

Chiropractic and Neck Pain: Conservative Care of Cervical Disorders

Arn Strasser, DC
Chiropractor
Strasser Chiropractic Center
Portland, Oregon

Pairs of gliding structures made up of lubricated capsule-like ligaments, called facet joints, link the vertebrae and allow one vertebrae to move in relation to those above and below it.

facets
The image above is a general illustration of the facet
joints and is not an exact replica of the cervical spine.

The spinal cord travels through a canal provided in the neck vertebrae. Neurological signals travel from the brain, down the spinal cord and out of openings in the vertebrae to control literally every cell in the body. Yet even as it protects the spinal cord, the neck gives us an incredible degree of neck movement.

spinal cord and nerve structures