“Why the Upper Cervicals?” – 3 Reasons
One question commonly asked when considering Upper Cervical Chiropractic care is “Why the Upper Cervicals?”. This article will present 3 reasons why this area of the spine should be carefully assessed and appropriately addressed by an Upper Cervical Chiropractor.
Upper Cervical Joints Are Highly Moveable
The joints of the upper cervical spine play a vital role in the movement of the head and neck, allowing for a high degree of rotation at the joint between C1 and C2, enabling us to look left and right. When a joint is more moveable it is less stable, an example of this would be the shoulder joint; the high degree of movement at this joint means it can be a common site of injury. Because of the high degree of movement between C1 and C2 it predisposes them to more easily misaligning from their normal articular position.
C1 will misalign relative to the occiput, it can either slip forwards or backwards, and at the same time will slip either left or right depending on the individual anatomy of the joints. When it slips from this normal position it will become locked against the occiput and cannot be corrected by the surrounding musculature.
C2 will misalign relative to C3, the facet joint on one side will slip either forwards and up or back and down producing a rotation of the C2 vertebra. Similarly to the C1 it will become locked in this position dependent on the angle of the joints.
It is because of this specialised part of our anatomy that it needs to be carefully assessed to determine the direct of misalignment before making specific adjustments to correct the position.
Blood Flow To The Brainstem
The upper cervical is in very close proximity to the brain, these are the first bones of the spine protecting the spinal cord as it exits the skull. The blood vessels in this region can be impacted by the position of the upper cervical vertebrae. The vertebral arteries are located in foramen on either side of each cervical vertebra. At C1 the arteries turn and joint together to form the basilar artery as it enters the skull. The vertebral arteries give 100% of the blood flow to the brainstem, an essential part of the nervous system which is responsible for multiple different autonomic functions that the body performs which we don’t consciously think about; things like regulating heart rate, breathing rate and digestion.
If this blood supply is altered by mild compression of the vertebral arteries this can result in dysfunction of the brainstem and the other nervous coming from this area. This is a common factor in headaches, migraines and autonomic conditions.
Proprioception - The 6th Sense
We are all familiar with the 5 senses sight, sound, smell, taste, and touch; but did you know there is another sensory function that your brain uses to assess your body position relative to the environment around you. This sense is called Proprioception. Simply put this is your brain’s ability to understand where your body is within space without using visual input (sight). Specialised nerve endings called proprioceptors give information to the brain about joint position and muscle tension. This helps our brain map out the position of the body. If these become dysfunctional it is harder for our brain to understand where our body is in space and make appropriate alterations to our position. The highest concentration of these proprioceptive nerve endings is in the muscles and joints of the upper cervical spine.
When there is a change in joint position at the upper cervical spine these proprioceptors are stimulated and give information to the brain about the position of the head. If this mechanism becomes dysfunctional due to misalignment of these vertebrae the brain may not receive the appropriate information and dysfunction begins to occur. This is a key factor is many dizziness conditions such and meniere’s disease and vestibular migraines.
As a result we often find postural compensations such as a head tilt, unlevelled shoulders and hips, and even functional leg length difference. We assess all of this in our initial assessment to determine if this is a factor in a patient’s particular case.
Hopefully by now you understand a little more about the Upper Cervical Spine, how it can impact the rest of the body, and why it is important to have it correctly assessed before having any work done on it.
If you have questions about how we do this and how we may be able to help your case, please book a complimentary call with Dr. Elliott here.
Learn More About Chiropractic!
Migraines - here
Cervicogenic Headaches - here
Child Speech Delay - here
Meniere’s Disease - here
Brain Fog - here
Temporomandibular Joint Dysfunction (TMJD) - here
Whiplash and Whiplash-Associated Disorder - here
Concussion and Post-Concussion Syndrome - here
Long Covid - here
Parkinson’s Disease – here
Tinnitus - here
Dystonia - here
Craniocervical (Upper Cervical) Instability - here
Dizziness - here
Epilepsy - here
Ear Problems - here
Dysautonomia - here
Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) - here
Mental Health Issues - here
Seizures - here
Cluster Headaches - here
Bells Palsy - here
Multiple Sclerosis - here
Trigeminal Neuralgia - here
CSF Flow - here
Vagus Nerve - here
Chiropractic Philosophy - here
Digital Content and the Brain - here
Cerebrospinal Fluid - here
Maintenance Care - here
Brain Blood Flow - here
Head Posture - here
Chiropractic Imaging - here
