Link Between Infertility, Undetected Spinal Problems Explored

Research being conducted by chiropractors into how spinal health influences fertility may give hope to couples who have been unable to have children, even after medical fertility treatment.

The Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research (JVSR, http://www.jvsr.com) has begun publication of a series of case studies and commentaries documenting positive responses to chiropractic care among infertile women, regardless of factors including age, history and previous intervention. The first in the series, "Insult, Interference and Infertility: An Overview of Chiropractic Research," is a literature review of 14 retrospective articles exploring the possible affect of spinal problems on fertility.

All of the women in these studies were found to have vertebral subluxations -- misalignments and/or related problems of the spine that interfere with how the nerves work. These problems in the spine can be corrected by chiropractors with painless adjustments to the affected spinal area.

Upcoming JVSR research articles will report on how physical, mental, chemical and emotional stress, can act, over time, as undetected insults to spinal health and contribute to vertebral subluxations. The stress histories of these infertile women included -- but were not limited to -- previous motor vehicle accidents, childhood falls, blocked fallopian tubes, scoliosis, and work stress that affected both mind and body. All of the women became pregnant after their subluxations were detected and corrected.

Among the cases cited in the first JVSR study was that of a 32-year-old infertile woman who had not menstruated for 12 years. The woman had undergone a number of medical infertility treatments, but still could not conceive. After two months of chiropractic care, with attention on adjustments in the lumbar region, her menses started and after regular cycles for four months, she became pregnant.

In explaining how chiropractic adjustments could affect fertility, Dr. Madeline Behrendt, Associate Editor of JVSR and lead researcher of this project noted, "Essential to all processes of life is the nervous system, which perceives the environment and coordinates the cellular community's biological response to the impinging environmental stimuli. It is reasonable to consider that a system that is properly functioning to its potential, may resist destructive forces more successfully and with less damage."

Infertility is commonly described as the failure to achieve conception by couples who have not used contraception for at least one year. Statistics from the Centers for Disease Control indicate that, in the U.S., about six million women and their partners are affected. Although medical studies have suggested that approximately 55% of the contributing factors involve the female, no cause has been determined for the infertility in a half million couples, the paper pointed out.

"There is such a strong need for this research," Dr. Behrendt stated. "I asked 50 women in my community if they knew where in the spine the nerves to the reproductive organs are located. None of them had ever been told this basic information, but they all wanted to find out, as they knew it had implications for their health. I urge all those struggling with the burdens of infertility to read this research."

The research papers will be published throughout this summer and made available through http://www.jvsr.com. The Journal of Vertebral Subluxation Research is a peer reviewed scientific journal devoted to subluxation-based chiropractic research. It is published by the World Chiropractic Alliance (WCA), an international organization representing doctors of chiropractic and promoting the traditional, drug-free and non-invasive form of chiropractic as a means of correcting vertebral subluxations that cause nerve interference.

The WCA is an NGO (Non-Governmental Organization) associated with the United Nations Department of Public Information. For more information, contact the WCA at 800-347-1011 or www.worldchiropracticalliance.org.

Reporter's note: An abstract of the research report is available at http://www.jvsr.com/abstracts/2003-1068_behrendt.htm.