Chiropractic and Organ Function

Disturbances of the nervous system (1) may cause or aggravate disease in various parts or functions of the body. Vertebral and pelvic subluxations may be involved in common functional disorders of an organic, visceral and vasomotor nature.

As stated in the “Chiropractic defined section” for the term “subluxations” they are of clinical significance (1) as they are affected by or evoke abnormal physiological responses in neuro-muscular skeletal structures and or other body systems.

How do we connect the organ with the subluxation (2), and thus the spine as the disease causing factor. In the thesis, chiropractic principle and technique, it states that the conductivity of a nerve can be interfered with by abnormal pressure on the spinal nerve, this is caused by a subluxation in the intervertebral foramen. This abnormal pressure does not compress the nerve, but interferes with the transmission of impulses. Example, organs which we do not receive a normal impulse supply undergo functional and or organic changes, their resistance to disease is reduced. The nature of the illness depends also on other factors present at the moment the subluxation occurs, or those which may come afterwards. A subluxation is characterised by the fact that it makes n organ susceptible to disease.

The interference with motor and sensory fibres at the intervertebral foramen, also interfere with

the trophic fibres (2) of the autonomic nervous system. The autonomic nervous system (3) consists of

two parts, the sympathetic and the parasympathetic nervous system. The autonomic nervous

system is that which regulates the activity of cardiac muscle (heart), smooth muscle (gastro

-intestinal) reproductive organs and glands. These glands (4) are made up of modified epithelial

cells that produce specific substances such as perspiration, saliva, milk, hormones or digestive

enzymes such as those released by the pancreas.

Trophic disturbances (5) are related to impaired nutritional and metabolic activities in tissues that are

partially under neurogenic control. These trophic changes (2) are expressed in organs with smooth

muscle which are supplied by the sympathetic part of the autonomic nervous system, for

example in the lungs such as asthma, in the intestines as diarrhoea or constipation and

dysmennhorrhea (period pain in females). Conversely, primary diseases in organs can increase

the tonicity of skeletal muscle of the same segmental area reflex wise and thus cause

subluxations of the spine.

In summary such disturbances of the spine’s adaptability will bring about a cycle which can be

corrected only by a Chiropractic adjustment, which can correct the effect of the subluxation

on the organs abnormal function and or the spine, and return them to normal. An example of

this is the very first Chiropractic adjustment of the modern era as described in the

“Chiropractic defined section”.

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