How to fit your patients into the perfect mattress Fitting patients for a mattress should begin with reviewing their medical and sleep histories.
The medical history and chiropractic examination help to identify problem areas in the body that may need added support or comfort and certain systemic problems, such as circulatory disorders, that may require specialized bedding. The sleep history should include sleeping difficulties, preferred sleeping position, current mattress type, mattress comfort preferences, frequency of waking up with back or neck pain or stiffness, and a description of their sleeping environment and bedtime ritual. Once this information is gathered, chiropractors can refer to this checklist to help the patient select the right mattress. Firm and extra firm beds Patients suffering with lower back pain most often prefer firm beds. The recommendation is not that they should sleep on a rock hard bed, but rather that they need support for the lumbosacral lordosis. A firmer bed prevents the low back from sinking deeply into the bed and irritating the facet joints. Higher end luxury beds can provide plenty of support along with comfortable padding while lower end discounted beds can provide firmness but with less comfort. People who sleep on their stomachs and backs tend to prefer the pronounced support of a firm or extra firm bed. Back and stomach sleepers can stress the thoraco-lumbar spine by putting it into forced extension. A firm bed counters this extension with halanced support.
Kids also do well with firm beds, but for a different reason. Many young kids jump a lot on beds and it takes a firm bed to hold up better to this kind of abuse. However, if a child is not a bed jumper, most prefer the luxurious comfort of a gentle firm bed or foam such as latex or Visco Memory foam. Older patients tend to want beds that are two sided as they were in the old days. It is rare to find this type of bed in today’s bedding market, but Chiromatic makes all of its 3 standard foam spring unit models with two sides for patients who want the ability to flip their mattress. Older patients also tend to enjoy beds that are firm or extra firm as they have difficulty transferring to and from softer surfaces. Larger patients tend to do well on firm and extra firm beds because they support the lumbo-sacral spine beter under pressure, last longer, and the innerspring units used with these mattresses are the strongest available in the industry and are reinforced with the Chiromatic patented lumbar zone system to give them enough strength to withstand 2000 pounds of downward
pressure. In addition, these beds are made with high density foam with a high ILD, which requires 50 pounds of pressure to move the foam one inch. This is the strongest foam used in bedding manufacture. Plush and pillow top beds Patients who are suffering from upper back and neck pain often prefer softer or plusher bedding. The plusher cushioning in the bed allows the head and thoracic area to sink into the bed to support the cervical area. Pillow Top mattresses and mattresses made exclusively of latex or latex in combination with visco memory foam are a good way to get the support of a premium bed while adding the plush comfort and feel. Patients with both upper and lower back pain may benefit
