Number of Vertebra The letter C is used to indicate Cervical, D Dorsal, L Lumbar, and S Sacrum in the record. Immediately following the letter which designates the region, place the number which shows the position in that region occupied by the vertebra in question, the _relation_ of that vertebra to its fellows. For instance, the third Cervical vertebra is C 3, the eleventh Dorsal D 11. To the S for Sacrum append B or A to indicate that the Base or Apex is described as to position. This _locates_ the subluxation. For a record of full spine palpation it is unnecessary to use the letters C, D, or L more than once, as subluxations are recorded in the order of their occurrence from above downward. A dash should always follow the number of the vertebra to separate it from the letters in the second column for convenience in reading. Direction of Subluxation The directions considered in palpating or recording subluxations are six in number, namely: Name Abbreviation Meaning Posterior P Toward the rear (Dorsad) Anterior A Toward the front (Ventrad) Right R Toward the right hand Left L Toward the left hand Superior S Toward the head (Cephalad) Inferior I Toward the feet (Caudad) As the fingers glide down the spine the _posterior_ vertebra is the one which interposes itself in the path of the fingers, forcing them to describe an outward curve. It is the hill on the automobile road which forces the surmounting of a curved departure from the evenness of the road. It is _relatively_ posterior to its fellows above and below. The _anterior_ vertebra, to the gliding fingers, means a depression, a valley. It causes the fingers to dip inward from the level of their course. The _right_ or the _left_ subluxation is appreciated by running the tips of the fingers down the sides of the spinous processes. It really indicates rotation of the whole vertebra more often than any other malposition. We say that a vertebra is _superior_ when its spinous process is nearer the one above than the one below. It requires a measuring of relative distances. The degree to which a vertebra is superior is measured, not by its actual closeness to its fellow, but by the relation between the space above and the space below. Likewise a vertebra is _inferior_ when it is closer to its fellow below than to its fellow above. _Anterior_ subluxations are rarely recorded as such, except of the Cervicals or the last Lumbar, because no means of properly adjusting them is known to Chiropractic. Order of Letters