How to Select the Best Table Height

Your table is the one tool you will use every day in your practice. However, given the physical nature of chiropractic, picking a poorly sized table will make for long days, unnecessary physical exertion, and ultimately, a reduction in your job satisfaction, efficiency, and longevity. So take the time to decide what table height you should get carefully. Moreover, if you pick wrong, or your practice style changes necessitating a change in height, correct the height of your table as soon as possible.

The age-old question is doctor comfort versus mechanical advantage. When discussing this, we are almost always talking about a side posture adjustment. General thought holds that the lower the table, the more mechanical advantage. However, that lower table comes at the expense of your having to bend more when performing all other tasks (examination, palpation, PA adjusting, and just about everything else). So why optimize your table to a single adjustment? That is the question, and only you, as the doctor, can answer it. If selecting your table to maximize mechanical advantage during Diversified side posture adjusting, measure from the floor to the top of your patella. That's your ideal table height. Our tables are available in any height from 18” to 26”. 

Your table should be built so the distance between the floor and the top of its cushions is at least the same height as what you measured from the floor to the top of your patella. I suggest adding at least 1 inch to that measurement if you will be primarily doing Diversified and 2 inches if you will be doing lots of drop work. A small sacrifice of mechanical advantage can go a long way in taking stress off your back during long work shifts. It's also good to remember that if your table comes equipped with a lumbo/pelvic drop, it should be used on larger patients. Therefore, optimal mechanical advantage during side posture should not necessarily be the primary consideration when selecting table height, rather, you should consider all of the tasks that are to be performed daily as part of your treatment package.