How the Spine Relates to Meniere’s Disease

Meniere’s disease can prove overwhelming at times to the person suffering from it. It is known for episodes of:

• Nausea
• Hearing loss
• Ringing in the ears
• Vertigo
• A feeling of fullness in the affected ear

Unfortunately, caring for Meniere’s can be frustrating for both patients and doctors alike. Most often, symptoms are treated individually to try to keep them from getting worse. Medications prescribed usually treat nausea and vertigo. Other options are used to reduce the fluid that has accumulated within the ear. However, unless the underlying cause of Meniere’s disease is addressed, it will continue to occur.

How a Misalignment in the Spine Causes Meniere’s

It has been recently recognized that Meniere’s disease is linked to a misalignment in the upper cervical spine. The spine has the responsibility of protecting the spinal cord. The spinal cord is the communication highway of the body, sending and receiving messages to and from the brain and body. The atlas vertebrae, the top bone of the spine, can cause pressure to be placed on the brainstem if it moves out of alignment. This hinders communication in the body and can cause such conditions as Meniere’s disease.

As an upper cervical chiropractor, I use a very gentle technique that corrects these specific misalignments of the C1 or atlas. This technique does not require me to pop or twist the spine or neck to move the bones back in place. It only takes a low force correction to relieve the misalignment that may be placing pressure on the brainstem. Once this pressure is removed, normal communication can be restored. This is often all it takes to reduce or even eliminate the symptoms of Meniere’s disease.

A study performed in 2010 reported that Meniere’s patients who received specific atlas corrections saw a great improvement in their symptoms. Out of the 139 patients observed, 136 of them saw their Meniere’s disease symptoms improve or go away entirely. The most notable symptoms that got better were vertigo and nausea.