Controversy about Craniosacral Therapy

Summary:

Since CST is a therapy that focuses on the whole body and the interactions within it, it is not suited to traditional methods of study that are linear and reductionistic. Since present research skills have not yet developed to measure all of the influences that are interacting simultaneously during a CST session, case studies and case control studies are alternative methods of contributing to the literature supporting CST.

Recent research suggests CST has been helpful for individuals with fibromyalgia, dementia, lateral epicondylitis, asthma, and bladder dysfunction in patients with multiple sclerosis. Also an on-going descriptive outcome study shows CST helping in a variety of diagnoses. One of the reasons why CST is still being taught around the world is that practitioners are facilitating excellent results with their patients in relation to structural alignment, function and pain reduction, among other measurable outcomes.

Common sense would also explain that 100,000 CST practitioners in over 106 countries around the world must be facilitating results with their patients otherwise the modality would not continue to grow and thrive.

We do not know if CST will ever be fully proven by today’s scientific methodology. There are too many intangible and unmeasurable variables. Dr. John E. Upledger has often said, “It will be the large body of patients that we treat that will continue to validate CST as a viable treatment modality”.