A Boy with a "Tic" and Upper Cervical Care

In the Journal of Upper Cervical Chiropractic Research, a case study was published on November 18, 2013, documenting the case of a child who was medically diagnosed with a "tic" disorder being helped by chiropractic care.

The study authors begin by explaining that, "Tics are described as rapid involuntary contraction of skeletal muscle in functionally related groups. They are nonrhythmic stereotyped movements or sounds. These tics occur primarily between the ages of 3-10. Tics lasting over the span of 1 year are considered to be chronic."

In this case, an 8-year-old boy was brought to the chiropractor after his pediatrician diagnosed him with a tic disorder. The study reports that, according to the boy's mother, her son began having symptoms at the age of 6. Symptoms started with head nodding and twisting multiple times a day. The boy's mother was concerned that this problem could affect her son's self-esteem and might keep her son from experiencing a normal childhood.

A chiropractic examination was performed which included a postural analysis, palpation, thermography, range of motion, and specific postural spinal x-rays. The conclusion of these tests was that there was a subluxation in the upper cervical spine. A subluxation is when a vertebrae of the spine is misaligned and creates some form of interference to the function of the nervous system. Many in chiropractic feel that the upper neck is the most critical area as it is so close to the brain stem.

Specific chiropractic care was begun for the correction of subluxation. After the first visit, it was reported that the boy had a decrease in the frequency of the tics he was experiencing. Prior to the second visit, the frequency returned, but the tics were lower in intensity. Following the second adjustment, the tics subsided.

A reevaluation was performed 17 days after the onset of care. At that point, the boy had not experienced any tics since before his second adjustment visit. At a one year follow up, the mother stated her son had not experienced a single tic episode.

In their conclusions the authors wrote, "This case report demonstrates the improvement of one male child with a tic disorder that underwent chiropractic treatment. The results in this case lend support to the subluxation based care of children with motor tic disorders."

(Editor's note: Remember the objective of upper cervical care is to correct head neck misalignment that is interfering with proper brain to body communication. When this is corrected the body functions at a higher level and can often correct other problems more efficiently on its own. Please do not confuse upper cervical care as a treatment for any condition, disease or symptom.)

Sydenham's Chorea and Upper Cervical Care

‘Ask the Doc’ responds to a question about Sydenham’s Chorea

By Dr. Philip Schalow

“I was diagnosed with Sydenham’s Chorea as a child. As I recover from headaches under upper cervical care, can I expect that other problems related to that diagnosis might also clear up?”

Sydenham’s Chorea is considered an autoimmune disease wherein the infection (thought to be a type of strep) gets into the brain. Any time a “bug” gets lodged in body tissues, the immune system becomes very interested in those hiding places and begins attacking those tissues. This can be a big problem! When it happens to the heart, your own body’s protective cells begin destroying heart tissue, and suddenly you have “heart disease.”

With Sydenham’s Chorea, mostly seen in children, the damaged area of the brain controls muscle activity. As a result, a child will begin to show extra activity in the face, body and arms, like a slow writhing or twitching movement. Most of the time, the symptoms clear on their own after a few months, but you are right about wondering if there is other damage to sensitive nerve tissue.

What we know about the immune system is that it is not so much an isolated system as it is an alliance among all the systems of the body. It involves nerve, skin, bone, digestion, endocrine, blood, elimination and even respiratory events to function at its best. We need our thymus gland (endocrine) to produce lymphocytes, our spleen and liver (lymphatic, elimination and blood) for antibodies. We need our long bones for producing blood that carries nourishing oxygen and nutrients to all body tissues. We need our nerves to control and coordinate all the functions of our bodies that keep us alive!

Where upper cervical care helps is to restore blood flow to the brain (there is ongoing research about that interesting fact), and to set up conditions favorable for long-term healing in all the systems of the body, including the immune system. Many patients report fewer sick days, no more asthma attacks, no more seasonal illnesses.

One patient with Multiple Sclerosis (a condition characterized by deterioration of brain cell tissue) has shown improvements in her neurologic tests after one year. It’s a slow process of restoring normal function as the nerve system rebuilds, but as the nerve system rebuilds, we see autoimmune disorders recede.

For complex conditions like Sydenham’s Chorea, upper cervical care is a fundamental contributor to care.

Dr. Philip Schalow is a NUCCA practitioner in Rockford. He owns 1st Step Chiropractic, S.C., 4519 Highcrest Road, Rockford. Call (815) 398-4500 for details or visit www.MyRockfordChiropractor.com.

 

(Editor's note: Remember the objective of upper cervical care is to correct head neck misalignment that is interfering with proper brain to body communication. When this is corrected the body functions at a higher level and can often correct other problems more efficiently on its own. Please do not confuse upper cervical care as a treatment for any condition, disease or symptom.)