When one looks at the technical differences between the Johnson Y Axis Adjustment®, also known as the Ring Dinger® adjustment, and the Y strap traction tool, the following is our official view.

First and foremost, the Johnson Y Axis Adjustment®, also known as the Ring Dinger®, was developed by Dr. Gregory Johnson to be a Global, entire spine Chiropractic Adjustment on the Y Axis. Dr. Johnson initially named it Manual Spinal Neural Decompression on the Y-Axis, but that was too long to write in the chart notes every time he saw a patient, so he nicknamed it the Ring Dinger®. He could know what adjustments he had made to patients and further shortened them to RD in his SOAP notes. Dr. Johnson developed the Ring Dinger® in 1981 and designed a Chiropractic Table specifically for the Johnson Y Axis Adjustment® in 2018. The Ring Dinger® Table is manufactured by Hill Laboratories in Pennsylvania specifically for his Y axis adjustment.

The Ring Dinger® is done by hands bilaterally placed under the towel, gripping a wet towel, secured at the base of the occiput posteriorly and the mandible anteriorly, bringing the entire spine to tension, then applying a Y-axis high velocity, low amplitude adjustment on the Y axis only, unlike the y strap. Having both hands in control of the adjustment on the entire Y axis of the spine with specific contact points on the occiput and mandible allows the provider control of the adjustment and Y-axis line of drive only.

Another significant difference in the Johnson Y Axis Adjustment® aka the Ring Dinger® is that the Ring Dinger® table locks the pelvis in place, securing it with steel pins covered by high-density foam are placed on the iliac crest bilaterally while the lower legs are raised to parallel with the table with an actuator leg elevation control mechanism. This table feature flattens the lumbar spine biomechanically while relaxing the paraspinal musculature of the spine so that the Y axis is in its most true Y axis biomechanical position during the delivery of the high-velocity, low-amplitude adjustment thrust, adding to the specificity of the adjustment to be true Y axis.

Burl Pettibon developed the Y strap some 30 years ago. It was supposed to be a cervical traction tool, not an adjustment. The y strap has a line of drive and contacts that can cause injury to the cervical spine when flexion and extension + Theta X (Flexion on the X axis) forces are introduced to the spine by a y strap practitioner attempting to adjust the spine. Still, the strap itself one part is down on the mandible with one part of the strap and lower on the cervical spine around C3-C5,6 on the cervical spine, causing Theta X (extension on the X-axis) lines of the drive as performed by most y-strap practitioners. This flexion and extension, when using the y strap, puts traumatic stress similar to a whiplash injury hyperextension, hyperflexion injury of the cervical spine when a y strap practitioner pulls with high velocity on the strap with little control of the actual movement of the spine.

This difference in and of itself is the most significant difference in the Ring Dinger®. The Ring Dinger® is an adjustment strictly on the Y axis vs the y strap, which is a traction device putting flexion and extension in the spine while not locking the pelvis for the specificity of the traction pull. It does not flatten the lumbar lordosis, relaxing the paraspinal musculature. The patient is dragged upwards on the table’s surface, which is not designed explicitly for the y strap. This inhibits/dissipates the forces of the spine when the y strap provider delivers the trust. The y strap is not specific to the y-axis, nor does it reach down the spine adequately to decompress the entire spine because the pelvis is not locked into place securely. It was never supposed to be an adjustment tool when Dr. Pettibon introduced it (y strap) into the Chiropractic profession some 30 years ago.

Chiropractors often write on their websites and other digital media platforms that the y strap is the same thing as the Ring Dinger® Johnson Y Axis Adjustment®, misrepresenting the facts as written in this blog post. The point is that they are totally different and should not even be compared. The Ring Dinger® Johnson Y Axis Adjustment® are registered federal trademarks owned by Gregory Eugene Johnson and should never be used by unlicensed individuals. Dr. Johnson’s trademarks require a trademark license fee of $495.00/month to use the trademarks on any digital media platforms. They can only be used by licensed providers who are Official Team Ring Dinger Providers with the proper training and certification by attending the ACE seminar and successfully passing the practical examinations that takes place in Houston, Texas, at Advanced Chiropractic Relief for three days in a row. The ACE seminar is held every Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday from 8:30 AM CST to 4 PM at Advanced Chiropractic Relief, located at 363 N Sam Houston Pkwy E Suite 1060 Houston, Texas 77060.

Recap: Dr. Burl Pettibon developed the y strap some 30 years ago. It was supposed to be a cervical traction tool, not an adjustment.

Dr. Gregory E. Johnson developed the Johnson Y Axis Adjustment®, aka the Ring Dinger®, in 1981. It is a Chiropractic adjustment of the entire spine on the Y axis using a wet towel to better control contact points, anatomical points, and forces used in the high-velocity, low-amplitude pulling thrust used on patients. Providers who write on any digital platforms say the y strap is the same thing as the Ring Dinger® and are in danger of legal action by Dr. Gregory E Johnson to protect the integrity and quality of the Johnson Y Axis Adjustment®. This official statement will serve the purpose of transparency and legality of the Johnson BioPhysics® technique, including the Johnson Y Axis Adjustment®, aka the Ring Dinger® adjustment.

The Johnson Y Axis Adjustment®, aka the Ring Dinger®, is different in many ways from the Y strap and should never be confused by anyone purporting that they are the same to get internet traffic by illegally using Dr. Johnson’s registered federal trademarks on their website or other digital media platforms.

Written by Gregory E. Johnson, D.C.