It was an interesting discussion with Dr. Mary G. Nochimson, the other day. I discovered that not only the usual therapies (you know, the litany of barbaric acronyms: PT, OT, ST...) can be used to improve the condition of children suffering from cerebral palsy, chiropractic can also be very efficient.
Wait, chiropractic? I thought it some kind of manual manipulation aimed to alleviate back pain. The look in Dr. Mary's eyes made me suspect that chiropractic is much more than that, so I though wise to let her explain.
By the way, how does chiropractic work?
Dr. Mary— Chiropractic intervention aims to improve the structural aspects of the body, to clear the pathway for the brain to communicate with the nerves. This can result in improved strength, balance, flexibility and coordination skills, especially in the limbs.
Clinically, chiropractic has shown to be helpful in improving the following conditions:
- Back pain or problems
- Breathing
- Drooling (release of the TMJ-muscles)
- Gait patterns
- Hypertonic musculature
- Joint pain or stiffness
- Muscle contractures
- Neck pain or problems
- Pain and tension
- Scoliosis
- Seizures
- Sleep difficulties
- Other musculoskeletal conditions
And what is a chiropractic adjustment?
A chiropractor will use several techniques to determine where a subluxation, or misalignment, is. An adjustment is completed when the joints of the spine are moved beyond the point where they would normally move in a way where it does not harm or dislocate the joints. Doing so will require the chiropractor to use gentle force and trained expertise to complete the movements. Note, untrained individuals should not attempt to perform these procedures on another individual.
These adjustments will be made over a period of time — consisting of several appointments — to help a patient regain movement and minimize discomfort.
But how chiropractic can cure kids suffering from Cerebral Palsy?
There is no cure for Cerebral Palsy, but there is evidence that chiropractic care can be helpful to children suffering from this condition. A handful of studies indicates that children that underwent spinal manipulation could sit and stand with more ease. Also, the studies indicated that some children became more active, digested food more efficiently, slept more peacefully, and enjoyed improved coordination after undergoing chiropractic care.
In the book, "Chiropractic Care of Special Populations," author Robert D. Mootz reports on a few specific treatments that have been reported to have improved some conditions of Cerebral Palsy:
- Adjustment of the atlanto-occipital subluxations helped with children who had difficulty with sleeping, personality disturbances, and hypertonic musculature.
- Upper cervical spine adjustments created clinical improvements in a 5-year-old male with quadriplegic Cerebral Palsy.
- Adjustments can be helpful in cases of cranial dysfunction in the sphenobasilar junction in children who have a history of birth trauma or head injury where motor tracts of the medulla may be compromised.
- Manual release of the TMJ-related muscles, such as the masseter and temporalis, may ease excessive drooling.
- Myofascial release may be used to assist in decreasing the severity of spinal distortion and aid in stabilizing gait patterns in children with spastic Cerebral Palsy who have muscle contractures in the paraspinals, lateral thigh muscles, lower extremity abductors, Achilles tendons, and wrist extensors.
You talked about clinical studies, can you be more specific?
A 2006 study, originally published in the Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research indicated that children with Cerebral Palsy that were determined to have subluxations showed improvement in their mobility after one month of care. One child demonstrated improvement in her ability to sit up, walk, and ambulate after 22 adjustments.
Another study, published by the Journal of Pediatric, Maternal & Family Health, determined that a 2-year-old boy with Cerebral Palsy was relieved of several symptoms that interfered with his mobility and ability to sleep. After seven months of care, he was able to pull himself into an upright position and was sleeping regularly. However, other features of his condition, such as uncontrolled movements, persisted.
To finally convince you
After this edifying conversation, I hurried back to my computer and found lots of evidences that patients suffering from Cerebral Palsy can benefit from chiropractic care.
But you are like Saint Thomas the Apostle and you need to see to believe? Watch this Youtube video, then: https://youtu.be/brhVJ6FiDeM.
Yes, there is still a lot to be discovered about Cerebral Palsy since the first documentation written by Dr. William Little in 1861, but new treatments continue to emerge and this gives hope to the patients who suffer of this condition and their families. Chiropractic is one of them. That's good news.
Sources
All the information above can be found in the book Chiropractic care of special populations, By Robert D. Mootz and Linda J. Bowers, and in the article Chiropractic Intervention from the website CerebralPalsy.org.
About Dr. Mary G. Nochimson
Dr. Nochimson graduated in 2011 from Palmer College of Chiropractic (the first school of chiropractic in the world, established in 1897 by Daniel David Palmer, the founder of chiropractic).
Since then she has been practicing in Florida, especially at T4K Chiro, at network of chiropractic clinics located in Coral Springs, Pembroke Pines, Weston, Coral Gables, Pompano Beach, and more recently in Boca Raton.
Beside her chiropractic license, Dr. Nochimson has a massage license and acupuncture certification, and teaches as an Adjunct Professor of Anatomy & Physiology I and II at NSU.
