- Christopher Bowles
- Kingaroy
- Australia
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Functional Neurology
I would like to add the opportunity for individuals to investigate the largely unknown field of Chiropractic Functional Neurology. A treatment approach largely pioneered by Fred Carrick.
Functional neurology is the study of the inter-relationships of an individual's neuronal systems within the context of their wider health. Using anatomical and embryological relationships the functional neurologist diagnoses dysfunctions within the systems and uses those relationships to effect change within the neuraxis.
It considers that the health state of a functional neuronal group or pool is determined grossly by it's level of pre and postsynaptic activation as well as the supply of nutrients and oxygen to the pool. This health state is termed the Central Ingrative State (CIS) and is a momentary "snapshot" of the integration active on that neuronal pool at any one time.
Functional neurologists consider that the CIS of a pool will impact on the CIS of neuronal pools to which it is anatomically or embryologically related. They then use these relationships to effect change with the nervous system using intrinsically and/or extrinsically generated stimuli that builds neuroplasticity within the dysfunctioning neuronal pool, thereby improving the neuronal function of the individual as a whole.
Its interesting to note that whether one knows it or not the change they are affecting on a patient is largely neurological. Be you a pt an acupuncturist a chiropractor osteopath etc etc you are stimulating a mechanoreceptor which is causing an afferent neuronal firing which will have a local PNS effect but also a CNS effect. This is why all these therapies maybe effective for one individual and not the next.
Harnessing the most effective modifier of neuroplasticity for the individual patient on that day at a specific moment in time is required. Unfortunately this approach is very difficult to do RCT's on and therefore verify with research. For more information see
http://www.acnb.org/ind
