March 2009

Where the philosophy and art of chiropractic meet science

by Dr. Ken Vinton

Since 1996, our office experimentally explored the fundamental concepts of subluxation and adjustment, looking at physical traits like posture, full spine x-rays and bi-lateral weight scale findings; autonomic nervous system indicators like sEMG, paraspinal thermographic findings, heart rate, heart rate variability, dynamic sEMG, peripheral skin temperature, respiration rate, and skin conductance levels; and central nervous system activity utilizing EEG. In this series of columns, I'd like to share some of our insights as a result of monitoring this extensive array of physiological processes.

During our research, we monitored some patients continuously pre-, during, and post-adjustment. Others were monitored hourly, daily or monthly and many were monitored over the course of several hundred adjustments. We also monitored different doctors who utilized a variety of techniques, and I can confidently report that the information we discovered of causes and removal of subluxation is unmatched in chiropractic's history.

Much like Newtonian physics is correct down to the level of the atom, it requires Quantum physics to explain what occurs (often times paradoxically) below the level of the atom. So it is with our exploration of the universe around us. Vast amounts are known, but very little time or money is spent on studying our "innerverse" (what happens, often unconsciously, inside our skin).

Hopefully, this will serve as an introduction to a larger perspective and open-up a new conversation in chiropractic.

Many DCs know that BJ Palmer, a staunch defender of "straight" chiropractic, used a variety of instruments in his own private clinic, -- such as thermal monitoring devices (NCM), EKGs, audiometers, etc. -- to objectively monitor physiological changes produced (or not) by his adjustments. In today's dollars, his research clinic had approximately $10-million dollars worth of equipment.

As far back as the 1920s, chiropractic's "developer" had come to understand that monitoring changes in autonomic nervous system function was a significant aspect of neurologically-based chiropractic. By the 1930s, Dr. Palmer had concluded that monitoring autonomic changes should take precedence over other "standard" procedures -- such as x-ray findings, palpation and "taut and tender" fibers -- in determining the existence and correction of subluxation vs. mere misalignments.

As his research continued, Dr. Palmer became convinced that monitoring CNS processes directly would provide even greater information than ANS processes allowed. Relatively few chiropractors are aware of the research he conducted in his later years utilizing the electro-encephalo-neuro-mentipograph, which was a precursor to the modern-day EEG.

Today, technology has advanced far beyond what BJ Palmer could have imagined. With the advent of modern computers (it wasn't until the mid-1990s that home computers were fast enough to perform these functions) and software programs, individual practitioners can have the equivalent of an advanced psychophysiology lab on their laptop!

The ability to monitor what actually happens inside the brain while correcting (or creating) subluxation is one of the most exciting developments in chiropractic in the last century. It provides new opportunities for precision and certainty in practice and offers a foundation for developing vibrant new models regarding subluxation and its correction.

Examples from our research files

One of the myths I often hear repeated, even by chiropractic experts, is that every thrust/adjustment changes the nervous system. Figure 1 is an EEG recording and Figure 2 an sEMG recording of the head and shoulders of a chiropractor receiving a cervical adjustment.

In this case, a popular hand-held adjusting instrument was utilized with appropriate pre-/post- checks, and while it's obvious that something happened in the EEG tracing while the thrust was being delivered (the "b" line is set up, "c" line is thrust) and the EMG/muscular reaction is evident (see the large spike in Fig. 2), overall there was no lasting change. Even after another chiropractor, using a different technique, attempted a different style of adjustment as seen as spikes towards the right end of each graph. So, yes, the CNS/EEG and autonomic system/sEMG did temporarily respond (actually, in fight/flight with an increase in beta brain waves, with simultaneous decrease in healing alpha and theta brain waves) to the stimulus, but the adjustment was not the full neurologic combination needed to unlock the subluxation pattern within this patients' nervous system on this visit.

(Note: some, unfamiliar with this concept, might think it will require multiple visits to get the neurologic shift we're looking for. This is not so. It appears to be an all or none phenomenon. And, there is another part of this equation, which depends upon the state the patient's nervous system is in, that may determine what effect your adjustment may have, regardless of technique. This concept will be explored in future columns.)

In Figure 3, the EEG recording was done pre- and immediately post-adjustment (not during the adjustment like the previous example). Each recording lasts 10-minutes and it's plain to see that there's a substantial shift in EEG and central nervous system activity following the adjustment.

I remember a chiropractor whose wife was "wired up" as he was palpating her neck. When he came across her third cervical area, there was a dramatic shift in her physiology. As he "dug in" for his set up, the shift disappeared. It was suggested that he back off/lighten up and the shift returned. Imagine discovering what your patients' Innate response is to your touch, set up or adjustment. What could this mean for your patients? Your confidence? Your result? Or, your self-esteem as a chiropractor. I know what it's done for mine.

This information is something you didn't learn from your technique instructor in college, or at the most recent technique or management seminar you attended. The good news is that you don't have to take my word for it. Get a NeuroInfiniti unit, start wiring people up, discover for yourself, and let's continue with the new conversation in chiropractic.

(Dr. Ken Vinton graduated from Palmer College in 1989 with research honors, and has studied extensively within chiropractic and outside the profession with leaders in the fields of healing, consciousness, neuroscience, psychophysiology, energy medicine, business and marketing. He has run both cash- and insurance-based practices and, since the late 1990s, his practice has maintained a patient retention in the hundreds [attributable in large part to the demonstrable proof of neurologic dysregulation as seen in the NeuroInfiniti exam findings]. Dr. Vinton practices in a solo practice and may be reached at drvinton@hotmail.com )