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The many vessels of the body
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As with any roadway, there
exists the possibility of traffic jams that prevent normal travel within your
body’s vessels. If you hit your elbow in
a certain spot, for instance, the ulnar nerve that carries electrical impulses
into your hand becomes affected, temporarily disrupting the neurologic flow
before normal sensation returns; that is the mechanism behind the popular
expression “hitting your funny bone.”
Much more severe occurrences can occur in other parts of the body,
diminishing the normal function of the heart, lungs, immune system, etc. Another example would be decreased
circulation of blood or lymph through their respective vessels, causing a
variety of problems all their own.
Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF)
can also be compromised. As with other
types of fluid, it is constantly reproduced, the old being reabsorbed to make
room for the new, like an everyday oil change of sorts. One of the most common areas to cause
disruption of CSF flow is the junction between the head and the neck, which is
the main intersection between the brain and the spinal cord through the
brainstem. Top segment of the spinal
column, the first cervical vertebra (C1), is a highly mobile bone held in place
by muscles and ligaments instead of interlocking joints, making it less stable
and more susceptible to misalignment when traumas occur. The head and neck misalignment affects all
types of fluid flow, not just CSF, but there is increasingly widespread data
that shows it to be perhaps the most common cause of CSF interruption, be it in
flowing freely or draining properly.
In 2008, an Italian
researcher made the connection between CSF and blood flow disruption and
Multiple Sclerosis, calling it chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency. Multiple Sclerosis is the most prevalent
autoimmune disorder affecting the central nervous system at roughly 400,000
people in the United States (a whopping 16% of total worldwide cases
known). The condition is distinguished
by the brain, brainstem, and spinal cord being attacked by the body’s own
immune system. As these core areas of
the nervous system are our life line, the devastation often left in the wake of
severe cases is life-altering.
The most pertinent question
regarding any autoimmune disorder is: why is the defense system attacking the
very body it was designed to protect? In
regards to M.S. as relates to the CSF flow disruption, the research shows that
failure to drain causes an accumulation of fluid in various parts along the
brain and spinal cord. CSF does not
actually flow through vessels like blood or lymph, but instead travels in
between spaces; when its course is impeded, it creates a scenario similar to a
car attempting to find an alternate route to escape traffic – the CSF simply
moves around the hindrance.
Unfortunately, there is not much space for it to go and pockets
accrue. The immune system consequently
recognizes these areas, views them as threats to the body, and signals an
attack. The aftermath is several tiny
areas of scarring, otherwise known as sclerosis; multiple areas of scarring are
called multiple sclerosis.
The Italian doctor found
that a procedure to restore normal fluid flow had an incredible effect,
prompting symptoms to decrease and the regression of the condition. His method involved surgery to apply small
balloons or stints, but newer research has centered on the efficacy of a less
invasive option: the upper cervical specific chiropractic correction.
One of the problems with
the surgical route is that there was found to be a high reoccurrence of
scarring in newer areas, primarily because it never did address the most
fundamental issue: if distortion of blood flow and improper drainage of CSF
prompts the immune system to attack the body, then what caused the fluid not to
flow or drain properly in the first place?
The new research points to the upper neck misalignment.
Dr. Erin Elster, an Upper
Cervical practitioner, has previously established that 90% of patients diagnosed
with Multiple Sclerosis had previously suffered a trauma to the head or neck
prior to the onset of their symptoms.
Another Upper Cervical practitioner, Dr. Scott Rosa, is using upright
MRI to specifically identify the pooling of CSF in the brain, correcting the
diagnosed upper cervical misalignment that presumably caused the CSF
disruption, and then doing another upright MRI to confirm that the CSF pools
have dissipated. Super Bowl-winning
quarterback, Jim McMahon, is a major advocate for this technique, describing
his post-correction experience as “like a toilet flushed in my head.”
In 2015, the results were
released from a multi-year collaborative project between several medical
physicians in Italy and American Upper Cervical practitioners, supporting
Elster’s and Rosa’s studies and showing that the upper cervical correction had
a dramatically positive impact on restoring fluid drainage and flow,
essentially reproducing the surgical option’s results without the downside. “We believe that the Upper Cervical
correction on C1-C2 could be the main non-invasive treatment of CCSVI in
patients with MS,” they concluded from their findings. A larger clinical trial is now underway.
Anyone suffering from M.S.
is an encouraged to at least have their upper neck evaluated by an Upper
Cervical practitioner, especially if they have a history of head or neck trauma
(and most do). Traditional methods to
treat autoimmune disorders like M.S. are not popular in the scientific
community. One method sees the immune
system depressed by powerful drugs, making the entire body more susceptible to
infection or cancer, while others see powerful steroids introduced in an
attempt to boost immune function, but as scientists at Oregon State are
confirming, that approach "is like hitting an ant with a
sledgehammer." There is nothing to
be lost by seeking alternative options such as Upper Cervical Care.
