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Tinnitus is by far one of the most stubborn and difficult conditions to recover from. Mainstream health care has few options that help this often debilitating condition. With that said there is hope! Over the past 20 years, our Blair upper cervical health care office has seen hundreds of tinnitus cases find relief.
We find that whole tinnitus can be a solitary symptom however it is most often found in combination with vertigo, Ménière’s disease, TMJ, and cognitive issues. It is also closely connected to neck trauma. Over the past 20 years, our office has served over 12,000 patients, and because we specialize in the upper cervical spine, over 1/3 of all of our new patients visit our office with tinnitus as part of their health concern. In this article, we will discuss the relationship between upper cervical spine injury, the nervous system, tinnitus, and chronic health problems.
Tinnitus, your neck, and the central nervous system
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Tinnitus can come in many forms. Some people hear a whooshing, some a high pitched ring, while others hear multiple different pitches and tones. Other patients can suffer from pulsatile tinnitus which is less common but these patients hear their heartbeat in their ear. We have noticed that many patients who come to our office describe that their tinnitus gets worse with certain head movements, clenching of the teeth, and stress.
When head movements done in certain positions increase tinnitus it’s a sure bet that upper cervical spinal misalignment is involved. We have also seen patients recover from tinnitus even when certain neck movements and positions do not Increase their tinnitus.
There are two pub med research articles that describe stapedius muscle clonus(spasm) in the inner ear and its relation to causing tinnitus. The stapedius muscle’s job is to dampen extreme noises to protect the inner ear. Many of us have had the experience of going to a loud concert and upon leaving we had a temporary ringing in the ear.
This results from the stapedius muscle contracting and kicking off tinnitus. Once the loud noise has been gone for a while the ringing stops. However, in the case of chronic tinnitus many who suffer, are the result of clones (spasm) of the stapedius muscle. Here is where the upper cervical spine and nervous system play a role.
The stapedius muscle’s tone is controlled by the second cervical nerve root. An injury to the upper cervical spine can lead to chronic contraction of the stapedius muscle which can be an underlying cause of tinnitus. Don’t take our word for it, listen to what Dr. Pat Allen has to say about how
Trauma, Tinnitus and the Upper Cervical Spine
The engineering of the upper cervical spine is unlike any other part of the spine. The head weighs 10-12 pounds and rests on the atlas (first cervical vertebrae) weighing two ounces. Essentially we are all carrying a bowling ball on the top of our neck and as a result, the head-neck junction is the most vulnerable region of the spine to result in spinal misalignment.
The head and neck is anchored by ligaments, muscles, and soft tissue. When a car accident, sports trauma, or other blunt acceleration-deceleration injury occurs, the ligaments that hold the joints of the upper neck together become injured.
Afterward, a cascade of neurophysiological insults occur. Because the head atlas and axis house the brainstem misalignment to this region of the spine can cause the physiology of the body to malfunction resulting in tinnitus, vertigo, ménière’s disease, and a host of other chronic health problems.
The Blair upper cervical chiropractor is well trained on locating and correcting these structural problems so the body can return to normal function and health.
What Exactly Does a Blair Upper Cervical Chiropractor Do?
Blair Upper Cervical doctors are specially trained to locate spinal misalignments in the upper cervical spine and correct them. Spinal misalignments are located by running a battery of neurological tests that locate the spinal segments that have been injured and misaligned by a prior neck injury.
Once located, precision imaging in the form of digital x-ray or cone-beam computed tomography (Cbct) is used to precisely determine which joint has misaligned and the angulation of the misaligned joint. Each person’s anatomy is different and therefore imaging is used to uncover the blueprint to be used to correct each patient’s individual misalignment pattern.
Once this information is gleaned, a gentle, light correction is made without twisting, popping, or pulling. The patient is then monitored overtime to ensure that the correction is holding. If the testing indicates the need for another correction, then it is performed. However, the goal of Blair Upper Cervical Care is for the patient to stay in “adjustment”. It isn’t the correction that produces healing. It is the removal of nerve irritation and the adjustment “holding” in its normal position that allows the body to function better and proceed through a healing process.
This is how Blair Chiropractic care can often help remove the underlying cause of many who suffer from tinnitus, Vertigo, Meniere’s disease, neck pain, migraine headaches, and other chronic health problems by supporting the body in healing itself.
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