Violent Outbursts Reduced in a 10-Year-Old Boy with Chiropractic Care

In the November 2014 issue of the Journal of Clinical Chiropractic Pediatrics is a case report documenting behavioral improvement in a boy after chiropractic care. The authors note that although there have been numerous studies on children who were diagnosed with a variety of conditions that are associated with behavioral issues, this is the only study of its kind where the subject did not have such a prior diagnosis.

In this case, a 10-year-old boy was brought to the chiropractor because of behavioral issues. It was reported that the boy would go from being calm and relaxed to sudden outbreaks of violence. His mother also reported that he suffered from frequent panic attacks and periods of anxiety. The boy had been suspended from several schools, and was only allowed to attend his present school for 50 minutes each day. Due to being out of school so much, he was not given an evaluation that may have led to a diagnosis. He was also having difficulty sleeping and was unable to sleep by himself in a room.

The history showed that he had a difficult birth and had suffered from multiple ear infections and tubes placed in his ears as a small child. He also had a history of bowel issues suffering with both constipation and diarrhea. He was given medication for his behavior, but that was discontinued as it caused weight gain.

The boy's mother was given a questionnaire to rate and document her son's condition and any changes from chiropractic care. This questionnaire was repeated regularly during care to evaluate any changes. Initially, she rated her son's issues at the highest level of severity. Chiropractic care was then begun with specific chiropractic spinal adjustments being administered.

By the fourth visit, the mother reported that she started to notice a significant change in her son's behavior. By the ninth visit, her son had improved by over 80% as rated by the questionnaire. At the time of this report, the boy still had some violent outbursts. However, these were fewer and easier to get him out of than before his chiropractic care. The boy's mother also reported that her son was sleeping better and was able to sleep in his own bed. He had no panic attacks, and his eating and bowel issues had improved.

The study authors concluded by writing: "This case report demonstrates that chiropractic spinal adjustments, the only treatment being rendered, were effective in improving the child's behavior. This study suggests that chiropractic care helped to reduce violent outbreaks as well as to improve the patient’s sleep, with additional improvements to satiety and frequency of panic attacks."