Chiropractic is a form of
alternative medicine that focuses on diagnosis and treatment of mechanical disorders of the
musculoskeletal system, especially the
spine, under the belief that these disorders affect general health via the
nervous system. It is the largest alternative medical profession, and
chiropractors often aspire to become
primary care providers, though they lack the medical and diagnostic skills necessary to fulfil this role. The main
chiropractic treatment technique involves
manual therapy, especially
manipulation of the spine, other joints, and
soft tissues, but may also include exercises and health and lifestyle counseling. The "specific focus of chiropractic practice" is
chiropractic subluxation, a concept for whose existence there is no good scientific evidence. Traditional chiropractic assumes that a vertebral subluxation or spinal joint dysfunction interferes with the body's function and its
innate intelligence. Some chiropractors want to separate themselves from the traditional
vitalistic concept of innate intelligence. However, as a whole, chiropractic is classified as a field of
pseudomedicine.