Fort Wayne Spinal Manipulation and VNS May Help Gastroparesis (Stomach Issues)
Stomach pain and related issues can upset more than the stomach. The body is filled with nerves from the head to the toes, and the stomach is in the middle of it all! The vagus nerve is one of the largest nerves spreading from the brainstem to the abdomen. What is in the middle of the abdomen? The stomach! (Talk about a brain-gut connection!) Gastroparesis sufferers’ days are disturbed by nausea, pain, delayed stomach emptying, and even vomiting. (1) Cox Chiropractic Medicine Inc offers new studies about some less invasive potential treatments like vagal nerve stimulation and even spinal manipulation that may help calm the stomach and ease the upset for Fort Wayne stomach pain patients.
GASTROPARESIS
For those who experience gastroparesis, the symptoms may include any number of problems they would rather not have. Researchers explained that any number of factors combined can trigger gastroparesis and disrupt quality of life. The metabolic feedback connection between the gut and brain have been explained and tied to the nervous system, specifically the vagal nerve that goes throughout the body. Regardless of what triggers gastroparesis, most patients experienced problems with the brain-gut innervation by means of the vagus nerve and/or intestinal nervous system. (2,3) Medical treatment so far has been limited in its effect due to the physiological complexity of gastroparesis. (1) Fort Wayne gastroparesis patients at Cox Chiropractic Medicine Inc will like having some options for helping them with this condition.
TREATMENTS FOR GASTROPARESIS: VNS
Researchers stated that medical therapy has been reduced in its ability to help. Vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) was explained as promising though. More invasive surgical stimulation of the vagus nerve has been attempted with some success. New, non-invasive approaches incorporated the use of a self-administered vagal nerve stimulator that reported improved gastric emptying for some. (1) Such a stimulator simulated the surgical cervical vagal nerve stimulation. (4) Stimulating vagal afferents with transcutaneous (through the skin) auricular (ear) vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) improved gastric frequency and better regulated digestion. To the researchers, this showed that brain stimulation influenced gut function. (2) They are linked, the brain and the gut! Using slow breathing with taVNS showed promise in treating anxiety, chronic pain, depressive disorders, insomnia, and cardiovascular diseases, too. Researchers wrote that slow breathing normalized vagus nerve activity and decreased psychophysiological stimulation making it useful in behavioral medicine. (4) Cox Chiropractic Medicine Inc offers that VNS may interest Fort Wayne chiropractic patients with gastroparesis and even chronic pain related to back pain and/or neck pain.
SPINAL MANIPULATION
Your Fort Wayne chiropractor is here to help with chiropractic skills and treatments to assist gastroparesis sufferers, too! And they may be old or young – adults and kids. Pediatric functional abdominal disorders include struggles with digestion issues. Children with functional abdominal disorders experience digestion and/or nausea issues after eating. Drugs are often given. Non-drug treatments like stimulation to the external ear (a spot the vagal nerve extends to), electrical stimulation, diet changes, pro/prebiotics, etc., also now include acupuncture, yoga, and spinal manipulation. (5) That’s our forte at Cox Chiropractic Medicine Inc: spinal manipulation!
CONTACT Cox Chiropractic Medicine Inc
Listen to the PODCAST with Dr. James Cox on the Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he describes the vagus nerve, its influence on the nervous system, and how to blend its stimulation with the Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management in relieving pain.
Make your next Fort Wayne chiropractic appointment with Cox Chiropractic Medicine Inc. Bring your pain issues to us. We’ll design a treatment plan to help!