Table 4 Treatment modalities used in Functional Neurology according to four sources in a scoping review
Sources of information | Conditions or signs | Tissues at fault | Therapeutic modalities | Specific comments | General comments | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Book | Chap.19 | Migraines and vertigo | Right cerebral hemisphere | SMT Eye exercises Breathing exercises Nutritional therapy | Most of the treatment modalities (e.g. SMT, sound therapy, eye exercises) are provided or performed to the opposite side of the targeted hemisphere. Nutritional therapy consists mainly of vitamin B, omega 3 and C0Q10 supplementation. | |
Complex regional pain syndrome | Cerebral hemisphere(s) | Joint manipulations Counting backwards Breathing exercises Nutritional therapy Hot and cold compresses Orthotics | The targeted hemisphere is probably the left because counting backwards is said by the author to stimulate the left cerebral hemisphere. | |||
Attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder | Right cerebral hemisphere and left cerebellum | Joint manipulations Sound therapy Spatial rearrangement exercises Breathing exercises Nutritional therapy | ||||
Depression | Cerebral cortex | Joint manipulations Sound therapy Spatial rearrangement exercises Looking at old photos and making up stories about them Breathing exercises Nutritional therapy | ||||
Low back pain with spinal root compression | Right cerebral hemisphere | Joint manipulations Breathing exercises Nutritional therapy | ||||
Post SMT symptoms | Right cerebral hemisphere and left vestibulo-cerebellar system | Joint manipulations Soft tissue and trigger point therapy Breathing exercises Nutritional therapy | ||||
Chap.20 | NA | Cerebral hemisphere | Activation: Any complex chore Manipulative therapy Eye exercises Cerebellar activation Sensory stimuli: visual, auditory, olfactory Transcutaneous electrical neural stimulation Inhibition: Earplugs, blinders Visualize rather than perform activities Evoked potentials at reduced amplitude | Some specific stimuli to stimulate the right and the left cerebral cortex are described. Moreover, some specific stimuli directed for the different lobes of the hemispheres are also described [39]. Stimuli directed to the cerebellum are described below. | In Chap. 20, the author does not deal with conditions but only with targeted neurological structures. | |
NA | Cerebellum | Manipulative therapy Warming the auditory canal Revolving chair Eye movements Passive muscle stretch Squeezing a ball Pointing | Specific exercises to stimulate the medial part and the lateral part of the cerebellum are also proposed [39]. | |||
NA | Vestibule | Cawthorne-Cooksey exercises Balance exercises | For details concerning these exercises, see [39]. | |||
NA | Brainstem | Smell and/or taste food Exercises and/or stimuli of muscles innervated by cranial nerves Rectal dilation | Specific exercises to stimulate the mesencephalon are also mentioned [39]. | |||
NA | Sympathetic activity | Local application of warm Transcutaneous electrical neural stimulation | These modalities are described to inhibit the sympathetic activity. | |||
NA | Caudate nucleus | Visualizing pleasant stimuli | In contrast, amygdala and/or hippocampus may be stimulated by visualizing unpleasant stimuli and “narrative recall” and list learning. | |||
Scientific articles | Carrick (1997) [9] | Enlarged physiological blind spot | Cerebral hemisphere | SMT | In the articles listed here, the large majority of the therapeutic modalities, i.e. manipulation, vibration therapy, eye exercises, and mirror therapy, are provided or performed depending on the targeted structure(s) and its/their side(s), except in the articles of Pedro (2005) (where this is not mentioned) and of Hirsh (2013) (where this is only mentioned for vibration therapy). bThese studies were conducted on healthy subjects who were found with an enlarged blind spot of one of their eyes. | |
Pedro (2005) [41] | Landau-Kleffner syndrome | Left hemisphere and right cerebellum | Manipulation Eye movement exercises Visual, olfactory, auditory, vestibular and somatosensory stimuli Interactive metronome Nutrition therapy | There was no precision of which modalities would alter one of the two targeted structure rather than the other. | ||
Daubeny (2010) [57] | Enlarged physiological blind spot | Cerebral hemisphere | Upper extremity manipulations | |||
Bova (2013) [43] | Cervical dystonia | Left cerebral cortex (frontal lobe) | Eye movement exercises | |||
Right cerebellum | SMT Vibration therapy | |||||
Right vestibular system | Eye movement exercises | |||||
Left basal ganglia | Eye movement exercises Vibration therapy Blue-lensed glasses | |||||
Kuhn (2013) [44] | Migraines, attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, and Tourette’s syndrome | Right cortical hemisphere | SMT Coordination activities associated with eye movements Interactive metronome | |||
Left cerebellum | SMT Coordination activities associated with eye movements Interactive metronome | |||||
Right basal ganglia | SMT Coordination activities associated with eye movements Interactive metronome | |||||
Left pons | SMT Coordination activities associated with eye movements | |||||
Hirsh (2013) [46] | Attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder, primary nocturnal enuresis and musculoskeletal pain | Right cortical hemisphere and left cerebellum | SMT Blue-lensed-glasses Optokinetic stimulation Vibration therapy Balance exercises Vestibular stimulation Timing exercises, including interactive metronome Home exercises: inhibitory of primitive reflexes, muscles strengthening, and balance exercises. Dietary changes | There was no precision of which modalities would alter one of the two targeted structure rather than the other. | ||
Esposito (2013) [48] | Symptoms related to traumatic brain injury | Cortex (including frontal lobe) | Off-axis rotational device | Other modalities are used (see Additional file 2a) without clear mention of which neurological areas are targeted. | ||
Vestibule | Off-axis rotational device | |||||
Right lower brainstem | Off-axis rotational device | |||||
Left upper brainstem | Off-axis rotational device | |||||
Superior colliculi | Red-blue-lenses | |||||
Bova (2014) [45] | Parkinson’s disease | Cerebral cortex | SMT Cross crawl exercises Mirror therapy | Cross crawl exercises are performed to stimulate the frontal lobe. Mesencephalon was also targeted without any mention of what modalities were used for. | ||
Basal ganglia | Vibration therapy Blue-lensed glasses Mirror therapy | |||||
Bova (2014) [40] | Idiopathic hemiparesthesia | Left cerebral cortex (parietal lobe) | Vibration therapy | SMT and cold laser therapy were also used. | ||
Left vestibular system | Eye exercises | |||||
Traster (2014) [47] | Symptoms related to traumatic brain injury | Left cerebral hemisphere | Manipulative therapy Passive complex movements of the extremities Eye movement therapies Earth-vertical axis rotations | Breathing exercises were also given to the patient. | ||
Left brainstem (including the left superior colliculus) | Optokinetic stimulations | |||||
Overall vestibule | Eye movement therapies Earth-vertical axis rotations | |||||
Websites | Website 4 | Symptoms related to traumatic brain injuries | Vestibular system | Off-axis rotational device | The content of each treatment is individualized, following the statements of the five websites. All of the practitioners resort to eye exercises and to home exercises and/or lifestyle counseling, especially concerning nutrition (see Additional file 2b). | |
Interviews | Informant 1 | NA | Temporal lobe(s) | Riding a bike | The content of each treatment is described as individualized. All the informants resort to home exercises. The majority of them use manipulative therapy and eye exercises (see Additional file 2c). | |
Informant 2 | NA | Cerebral hemisphere | Manipulative therapy | |||
Symptoms following traumatic brain injuries | Brainstem | Somatosensory evoked potential | ||||
Informant 3 | NA | Cerebral hemisphere | Manipulative therapy | Coordination exercises and exercises for fine motor skills are performed to stimulate the lateral part of the cerebellum. | ||
NA | Cerebellum | Manipulative therapy Coordination exercises Exercises for fine motor skills | ||||