Running posture and step length changes immediately after chiropractic treatment in a patient...

OBJECTIVE: This case study reports on selected measures of locomotion (running) in a 5-year-old patient with xeroderma pigmentosum after chiropractic care. CLINICAL FEATURE: A 5-year-old female patient (16.4 kg, 99.1 cm) with xeroderma pigmentosum (type A) volunteered to participate in the experiment with the consent of her parents. The patient had well-documented signs of delayed fine motor (eg, difficulty with writing, coloring, cutting) and gross motor control (eg, balance and coordination dysfunction and falling while running), and delayed speech. INTERVENTION AND OUTCOMES: Trunk forward lean angles, step lengths, and hip horizontal translations were assessed by video as the participant ran as fast as possible down a laboratory runway. After chiropractic manipulation (adjustments), the patient reduced the trunk forward lean angle to become more vertical (P = .000). In addition, the patient experienced an increase in step length (P = .031). No significant change in lateral translation was observed after the intervention. CONCLUSION: For this patient with xeroderma pigmentosum, chiropractic manipulation (adjustments) resulted in immediate changes in running performance. Further investigation is needed to examine the effect of chiropractic on locomotion in both symptomatic and asymptomatic patients.

J Manipulative Physiol Ther. 2009 Jan;32(1):93-8. Smith DL, Walsh M, Smith JP. Essence of Wellness Chiropractic Center, Eaton, Ohio 45320, USA. drdean@essenceofwellness.com