| Dural Connection
Internet Edition Volume
1, Number 2 This is the second of a series of abstracts of published articles relating to Sacro Occipital Technique and Cranial Manipulation. Please use these for educating insurance companies, the judiciary, the legislature, the colleges and the interested public. Cooperstein, Robert, Sacro Occipital Technique. Journal of Chiropractic Technique , August 1996, Vol. 8, No. 3: pp. 125-31. This paper was commissioned to be written, by the ACA Council on Technique in conjunction with its Advisory Panel. The article discusses the history, scientific basis, and clinical techniques used by practitioners of Sacro Occipital Technique. Originally developed by Major Bertrand DeJarnette as an outgrowth of a combination of chiropractic and osteopathic methodologies, it has become one of the more frequently used chiropractic procedures. The keystone to diagnosis within this system is the ability to place patients into one of three categories. Other diagnostic and therapeutic considerations are discussed as well. Blum, Charles L., The Effect of Movement, Stress and Mechanoelectric Activity Within the Cranial Matrix. International Journal of Orthodontics , Spring 1987, Vol. 25, No., 1-2, pp. 6-14. This study presents substantial research supporting the premise that: (1) Cranial sutures and bones are capable of flexibility and slight movement. (2) Mechanical stresses can affect the sutures on a short-term basis. (3) Mechanical stresses can affect the sutures on a long-term basis. (4) An interrelationship exists between cranial sutures and the structures transmitting mechanical forces; this relationship has a matrix/holographic organization. (5) Mechanical stresses within the cranial bones and sutures are capable of creating a piezoelectric effect. This piezoelectric effect is of a magnitude sufficient to create changes within the associated cranial bones and soft tissues to affect enzymatic changes, osteoblastic/osteoclastic activity and neuroelectric dynamics. The author concluded that in light of the advances in orthodontics, temporomandibular joint treatment, and cranial manipulative therapy, we must view cranial motion as part of a dynamic and kinetic, physiological, cranial matrix. The ability for cranial bones to move, or not move, plays a part in the transmission of stress within the cranium and could have far reaching effects. Getzoff, Harvey & Gregory, Thomas M., Chiropractic Sacro-Occipital Technique Treatment of Arthrogryposis Multiplex Congenita. Journal of Chiropractic Technique , May 1996, Vol. 8, No. 2, pp. 83-7. The author's objective was to present a case of chiropractic treatment of arthrogryposis multiplex congenita (AMC). The case involved a 6 year-old boy diagnosed with AMC evidenced by severe generalized locomotor disability, including the inability to bend over to tie his shoes , as well as reoccurring kidney infections. His prior treatment options included only orthopedic surgery and antibiotic therapy. His parents instead chose to begin chiropractic care and continue with antibiotic therapy in an effort to increase his level of physical ability. The patient received 26 chiropractic treatments using Sacro Occipital Technique (SOT) protocols over a period of 9 months, after which he could bend over to tie his shoes. In addition, he learned to ride a bicycle without training wheels, could swim part of the way across a pool unaided, and presented a greatly improved physical demeanor. SOT chiropractic treatment demonstrated effectiveness in improving general physical ability and quality of life for a child suffering from AMC Flanagan, Michael F., The Relationship Between CSF and Fluid Dynamics in the Neural Canal. Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics, December 1988, Vol. 11, No. 6, pp. 489-92. This study determined that there is a relationship between fluid dynamics in the neural canal and cranial vault. This relationship can be affected by posture, respiration and pathology. In addition, several chiropractic disciplines have advocated that axial skeletal improprieties may also affect fluid dynamics in the canal and vault. This paper reviews literature pertinent to these issues. The information it contains is relevant to those disciplines that attempt to manipulate fluid dynamics in the canal and vault, as well as to those that treat neurological disorders. Blum, Charles L., Biodynamics of the Cranium: A Survey. The Journal of Craniomandibular Practice , March/May 1985, Vol. 3, No. 2, pp. 164-71. Revamping a possible archaic view of normal cranial physiological biodynamics is a challenging undertaking. New ideas lie fragile for years awaiting the slow accumulation of evidence. This article presents substantial research answering the questions: (1) Is it possible for the cranial bones to move? (2) Do intracranial pressure changes actually translate into cranial motion? (3) Are there pressure changes of cerebrospinal fluid occurring intracranially due to vascular, pulmonary, and other theorized pulse waves? (4) What can interfere with the transmission of these pressure waves? (5) What could be the consequences of increased and/or decreased cranial motion to the health of the body? The author presents literature noting that dural tension and/or brain/spinal cord tension reflecting in the neural substance, nerves and associated blood vessels could well lead to changes of a pathological nature. This could be separate or could be in conjunction with associated CSF buildup of catabolites and resultant patho-physiological changes. The effect of cranial bone stasis or tension is clinically alleviated through gentle subtle manipulations of the cranial bones. The treatment is focused towards obtaining relaxation of the soft tissues of the brain and spinal cord in situ, through the dural extension into the sutures and cranial bones. Norton, J. M., A Tissue Pressure Model for Palpatory Perception of the Cranial Rhythmic Impulse. Journal of the American Osteopathic Association , October 1991, Vol. 91, No. 10, pp. 975-7, 980, 983-4. In this study a tissue pressure model was developed to provide a possible physiologic basis for the manifestation of the cranial rhythmic impulse (CRI). The model assumes that the sensation described as the CRI is related to activation of slowly adapting cutaneous mechanoreceptors by tissue pressures of both the examiner and the subject, and that the sources of change in these tissue pressures are the combined respiratory and cardiovascular rhythms of both examiner and subject. the model generates rhythmic impulses with patterns similar to those reported for the CRI. Also, a significant correlation was found between frequencies calculated from the model and published values for CRI obtained by palpation. These comparisons suggest that the CRI may arise in soft tissues and represents a complex interaction of at least four different physiologic rhythms. Next issue of the Dural Connection Internet Edition will include some very interesting poster presentations gleaned from the Fortieth Annual AOA Research Conference Abstracts, 1996: Part 2 which were published in The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association , September 1996 issue. |