Why is everyone in Ottawa walking funny?

Ottawa’s health issues used to be a fairly predictable rotation of seasonal allergies, winter depression, flu and wondering when the last time anyone has seen their family doctor was. But for the past several years, a new city-wide affliction has been stalking our streets. According to chiropractic assessments, it seems there is a hidden ongoing epidemic that physicians do not really know and that is “Leg Length Discrepancy Syndrome.” It often begins innocently enough. A patient comes in complaining about a sore back after standing in a stooped position in the Costco line, lifting a heavy object or sleeping in a funny way. Sometimes, before the patient can even finish describing their back pain, the explanation lands quickly: “Did anyone ever tell you . . . your right leg is shorter than the left?I’ve heard some version of this scene at least ten times in the last two years. And every time, I have the same image: a patient leaving the clinic in utter disbelief, staring at their own two legs as if trying to solve a mystery. Suddenly, each step taken is suspect. Am I always leaning toward the Rideau Canal? Did I tilt to the left on my way to Parliament?I thought it was a coincidence at first. But as more and more new patients walked in with the same explanation, I started to wonder. If this trend continues, you’d think Ottawa had developed a collective limp, with half the city suspiciously checking the length of their own stride.Read: Dr. Jabir Jassam: The legacy of discriminationFair enough. Real, anatomical leg length discrepancy is a thing. It happens but rarely. It can cause pain. And yes, in many cases, it should be addressed. But the instant many cases of back pain become “your leg is shorter,” is the moment that it stops being a diagnosis and starts being a myth. It’s the musculoskeletal equivalent of “mercury is in retrograde.” An easy way to explain everything without actually proving anything.To be clear, many chiropractors do excellent work and provide real relief for patients. The issue isn’t the profession—it’s when a single, oversimplified explanation gets applied to every case of back pain.Whether in chiropractic, physiotherapy or even medicine, the danger lies in offering explanations that are too neat. Patients can walk away not just with back pain, but with a lasting belief that something fundamental in their body is “wrong.” That belief, more than any misaligned vertebra or tight muscle, can fuel ongoing suffering.Of course, once you’ve convinced a patient that one of their legs is shorter, all signs start pointing to an expensive solution: weekly spinal manipulations, heel lifts, special custom orthotics and, of course, the expensive “ergonomic pillow” that will cure all their ails while they sleep.Here’s an even crazier thought: what if their pain is the result of tight muscles, poor posture, sitting all day, or trying to lift a snowblower in January like some sort of Spartan warrior? Maybe the legs are just fine.Until someone proves that Ottawa is in the midst of an epidemic of pathologic leg length discrepancy, let’s give the population the benefit of the doubt. If you notice someone limping down Bank Street, don’t assume they have mysteriously lost a few centimetres of femur. They may simply be dodging a pothole.Dr. Jabir Jassam is a family physician in Ottawa.

Why is everyone in Ottawa walking funny?

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