Craniosacral Therapy
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[edit] Definition
Craniosacral Therapy (also known as SomatoEmotional Release) is a purported form of medical treatment based on the idea that health can be improved by releasing "restrictions" in a system composed of the cereberospinal fluid and associated membranes. The head is stroked or massaged with a light touch. This is supposed to improve the functioning of the central nervous system and "bolster" the immune system. It is claimed to be effective for a wide variety of conditions, including colic, autism, and learning disabilities.
[edit] Origins
Craniosacral Therapy is purported to have been developed by John E. Upledger at Michigan State University. A search of the MSU website[1] of faculty, staff, and retirees returns no matches.
The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association lists three papers with Upledger, JE as the primary author. All three include the term craniosacral in their title. Three later papers list Upledger, JE as a secondary contributor, and these appear to be studies of other osteopathic diagnosis techniques.
Craniosacral Therapy appears never to have become widely accepted by mainstream or osteopathic medicine in the United States, though it is practiced by many Licensed Massage Therapists as well as many Naturopaths, Chiropractors, and other practitioners of alternative medicine.[2] It seems to have achieved much greater popularity outside the United States. A variety of association, institutes, and other organizations have cropped up in Canada[3], the United Kingdom[4], and Australia[5].
[edit] Quotations
- CranioSacral Therapy gives me a holographic approach at looking at the system as a whole. I find it to be very gentle and effective. It allows me to look at each human being as an emotional, mental, and physical being, thereby putting the patient at the highest priority. --G.D., Palo Alto, CA [6]
- I received an excellent undergraduate medical education and am proud to be a DO, but I cannot continue to support an antiquated system of healthcare that is based on anecdote or, in some cases, pseudoscience. As a medical school student, I was taught to critically analyze problems and practice evidence-based medicine. When it came to courses in osteopathic principles and practices, however, my peers and I were asked to put aside our critical, evidence-based medical skills and accept the tenets of OMT on faith. When we questioned such esoteric practices as craniosacral therapy and energy field therapy, we were told that "we needed to believe." Likewise, when less than 5% of the class "felt" the craniosacral rhythm, the rest of the class was derided for a lack of faith—to the point that ejection from the medical school was threatened. When we complained that some students were using barbeque strikers to stimulate invisible "energy fields," we were told that in time, we would come to understand and believe. --Bryan E. Bledsoe, DO [7]
[edit] Discussion
Craniosacral Therapy is almost impossible to take seriously. The human skull is a very robust structure and gentle massage is not going to affect it. A decent head massage can certainly feel good and can relieve some headaches by relaxing the neck, jaw, and facial muscles, but advocates of craniosacral therapy claim that a force equivalent to a five-gram weight is used, which is not enough to give a decent massage. Many people may enjoy having their head touched and may pay for the service, just as many pay top dollar to travel to Montauk Point for the service of being sprayed with a hose, but the unsubstantiated claims of craniosacral therapists go far beyond these pleasures.
Outside of the large number of organizations that promote and advocate CST, the term craniosacral itself is mostly used as an in-joke, invented independently many times over many decades. The cranium is the collection of fused bones that make up most of the head, and the sacrum is a triangle of fused boned at the back of the pelvis, so medical students, interns, and even adult physicians use "craniosacral" to refer to the condition of having one's head up one's buttocks. Similar in-jokes include the opticorectal nerve, which gives one a crappy outlook on life, and manonictophobia, the fear of being poked in the eye.
Superficially impressive terms are common in pseudoscience and hucksterism. These are often puns and are often used in cynical ways. P.T. Barnum is noted for having placed a sign saying "This way to the Egress" in Scudder's American Museum[8] in the hopes that his patrons were uneducated enough to think that egress referred to some exotic animal and would have to pay for re-entry into the museum. Whether or not it was so designed, the term craniosacral is perfectly suited for providing many a chuckle on the way to the bank where, in a tribute to their founder, they can up their ledger.
Craniosacral Therapy is distinct from Craniosacral Diagnosis, a system of diagnoses involving feeling "energies" or "tensions" in the head, back, and buttocks. Controlled studies of this technique have failed to show that individual practitioners can even consistently agree on their diagnoses.
[edit] Related Topics
[edit] References and Links
ebm-first : links to 20+ scientific articles on craniosacral therapy.
Craniosacral therapy is quackery
Rogers JS, Witt PL, Gross MT, Hacke JD, and Genova PA, "Simultaneous palpation of the craniosacral rate at the head and feet: intrarater and interrater reliability and rate comparisons," Phys Ther. 1998 Nov;78(11):1175-85. Abstract
Confessions of a Quackbuster: Craniosacral Therapy(CST)
Green C, Martin CW, Bassett K, Kazanjian A, "A systematic review of craniosacral therapy: biological plausibility, assessment reliability and clinical effectiveness, Complement Ther Med. 1999, 7:201 -207.
