A 2017 systematic review of clinical evidence about the compression of the fourth ventricle using a Craniosacral Osteopathic Technique shows impact on nervous system functions like reduced sleep latency and decreased anxiety. Among other benefits, CV4 “may modify the heart rate, blood flow velocity, blood pressure, and cerebral tissue oxygenation and…

A 2017 commentary that references a preliminary study in which CranioSacral Therapy (CST) was tested on a group of ex-National Football League (NFL) players, “the results show that players experienced statistically and clinically significant improvements in range of motion, pain, sleep, and cognitive function.” ACCESS TO ONLINE ABSTRACT ACCESS TO FULL…

A 2020 research review with the purpose of determining the effectiveness of craniosacral therapy in musculoskeletal pain disorders. The five studies reviewed reported statistically significant improvement in at least one type of perceived pain in intervention group, and in at least two of the assessed tests, the difference between the result…

A 2016 pilot study “designed to examine the effects of mixed Light Touch Manual Therapies (LTMT) on headache, anxiety and other symptoms suffered by active duty United States service members experiencing chronic Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).” Results indicate “that headache, anxiety, and pain interference were significantly reduced during the course of…

A 2017 research study conducted by “physical therapy researchers in Iceland that studied the effect of craniosacral therapy (CST) on participants with migraine headache. Participants aged 18 to 50 years were recruited if they had a diagnosis of migraine”. The outcome measure was the Short-Form Headache Impact Test (HIT-6), which covers…

“Abstract: (1) Background: Fire department cadets preparing to become firefighters and paramedics experience high levels of stress when participating in incidents like traffic accidents and fires. Stress adversely affects health and coping with it proves difficult. Unfortunately, there is no single method that reduces stress completely in humans. One non-invasive method…

A 2018 case study showing how CranioSacral Therapy significantly improved the condition of a 68 yo male suffering from chronic lumbar pain, lumbar arthrosis and disc herniation. After the 3rd session the intensity of the pain on the lumbar-sacrum areadiminished considerably and after the 6th session the pain intensity and tension…

A 2016 opinion piece on feeding in the NICU by a Craniosacral Therapist with nine years of experience working in a Level III NICU. Abstract states: “Completing full feedings is a requirement for discharge for babies in the NICU. Interaction between the nerves and the muscles of the jaw, tongue, and…

A 2019 randomized controlled trial conducted on 58 infants, aged 0-84 days, diagnosed with infantile colic. “The babies received a 30-40 minute CST session once a week (experimental group) or no treatment (control group). Babies in the CST group received either 1, 2 or 3 CST sessions over a 14-day period. Data…

A 2019 systematic review to assess the evidence of craniosacral therapy (CST) for the treatment of chronic pain searching Pubmed, Central, Scopus, PyscInfo, and Cinahl up to August 2018. Results suggest: “Ten RCTs of 681 patients with neck and back pain, migraine, headache, fibromyalgia, epicondylitis, and pelvic girdle pain were included. CST showed…

A 2020 qualitative study from an outpatient clinic in Norway consisting of “semi-structured individual interviews (n = 8) and one focus group interview … conducted with the therapists at the Clinic for Psychosomatics, Hospital of Southern Norway, Kristiansand, Norway. The text data were transcribed verbatim, and the analysis of the material…

A 2016 study using the Upledger Institute 10-step craniosacral protocol Version 1 on 49 participants with cervicogenic headaches who meet the Cervicogenic Headache International Study Group diagnostic criteria for CGH. Over the course of three weeks each participant received 9 sessions. “SPSS statistical software (version 10.0) was used for all the analyses. Correlation analysis…

A 2014-2015 single-blinded case series conducted at the Upledger Institute with 11 male retired professional football players medically diagnosed with post-concussion syndrome. Each participant received a 2-hour session in the morning and in the afternoon of CranioSacral Therapy (CST), Visceral Manipulation (VM), and Neural Manipulation (NM) for five days. Results: “Statistically…

A 2015 case study showing how biodynamic craniosacral therapy aided a 53-year-old man with arthritis who developed knee pain during his 30 years of being a server in restaurants. The pain scale (1-10) was used after every session to evaluate treatment efficacy using eight different categories: knee pain, knee tension, knee…

A 2016 study “to investigate neurological short-term effects of craniosacral therapy as an ideal form of osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) due to the soft kinaesthetic stimulation. Included were 30 preterm infants, with a gestational age between 25 and 33 weeks, who were admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit of the University Hospital of…

A 2016 A single-blinded randomized controlled trial consisting of sixty-four patients with chronic nonspecific low back pain. Results show: “No statistically significant differences were seen between groups for the main outcome of the study, the RMQ (p = 0.060). However, patients receiving craniosacral therapy experienced greater improvement in pain intensity (p ≤ 0.008), hemoglobin oxygen saturation…

A 2016 preliminary study consisting of online questionnaire survey completed by 405 participants assessing craniosacral as a form of treatment for Autism Spectrum Disorders. Conclusion determines “This preliminary study introduces the concept of CranioSacral Therapy as a treatment option for symptoms associated with ASD. Its clinical use has been available for…

A 2012-2013 randomized controlled clinical trial with a parallel-group design and 3 months of follow-up observation of 54 blinded patients were randomized into either 8 weekly units of CST or light-touch sham treatment to assess the effectiveness of craniosacral therapy in treating chronic neck pain. Findings: “CST was shown to be specifically effective…

A 2013-2014 randomized trial with two groups of twenty subjects experiencing cervical pain meant to determine if classical massage, craniosacral therapy and/or the two modalities combined help decrease cervical pain. Findings: “On the basis of conducted research, the following conclusions have been drawn: 1. Classical massage is an effective and valuable method of…

A 2006-2007 study with 30 participants, 27 adults and 3 children between the ages of 8 and 14. “The patients presented with pain [(26) 86.7 % ]; depression [(2) 6%]; anxiety [(1) 3.3 % ] and depression +anxiety in [(1) 3.3 % ]. There was complete recovery in 10 (33.3%) cases; 75 % recovery…

A 2015 study with participants between the ages of 17 and 25 that “aimed to assess the effectiveness of biodynamic craniosacral therapy as an adjunctive method for emerging adults with autism…. The group was administered 30 therapeutic sessions on a regular interval of time. The study uses a pre-test, mid- evaluation and post-test…

A 2012 study evaluating the increased effectiveness of Sensory-Integration Therapy (SIT) when used in conjunction with Craniosacral Therapy (CST). Twenty autistic children participated in this study over the span of 6 months. Findings report: “it is clearly evident that there was overall improvement of children occur in both the groups. However the experiment group had shown better improvement…

A 2015 randomized controlled trial with 19 patients experiencing chronic non-specific neck pain. Findings suggest: “Most patients described positive changes in more than one of the following domains: physical (less intensity of pain, headache and dizziness, improved sleep and range of motion), perceptional (more upright and symmetrical posture, sustained deep relaxation), emotional (pain is less threatening, increased calm, confidence…

A 2015 qualitative study of 29, self selected participants’ experiences with craniosacral therapy through semi-structured interviews. The aim of the study includes effectiveness of craniosacral therapy through the expectations and perceptions of the participants. Conclusion determines that “all participants in this study observed positive changes in their health status and most attributed these…

A 2009 study with a final sample of 139 patients aimed to “examine whether an abnormal CRI is associated with excessive crying of infancy.” Results show “Infants with an abnormal CRI at 2 weeks were 6.8 times (95% confidence intervals 2.2, 20.6) more likely to develop excessive crying than infants with a…

A 2014 preliminary report of a study aimed to “examine the utility of craniosacral therapy techniques in the treatment of patients with lumbosacral spine overload and to compare its effectiveness to that of trigger point therapy, which is a recognised therapeutic approach.” The study consisted of 55  participants between the ages of 24…

A 2015 case study showing the use of craniosacral therapy to help a 50 year old female with refractory headaches, vertigo, and cervicobrachial syndrome following and traumatic brain injury. The results of this study show that “implementation of CST in integrative inpatient care could benefit patients with headache and vertigo from intracranial injuries.” FREE ACCESS TO…

A 2013 case study showing the use of craniosacral and myofascial techniques to help a 31 year old female with thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS) during pregnancy. “The results of this study indicate that massage therapy, specifically focusing on craniosacral therapy and myofascial releases integrated with general Swedish massage, are effective modalities in treating TOS related to pregnancy.“ References: Case Study: Cowie,…

A 2014 follow-up study “aimed to report on follow-up data of a randomized controlled trial in chronic non-specific neck pain patients” with 54 individuals experiencing chronic non-specific neck pain. “Study results indicate that Craniosacral Therapy is more effective in relieving chronic non-specific neck pain and in improving physical quality of live than…

A 2013 survey coordinated by the Centro Biodinamica Craniosacrale C.B.C. to assess the efficacy of biodynamic craniosacral therapy treatments on a large international group of clients and students. 237 interviews were conducted over a 6 month period. Interviewees needed to have a minimum of 5 BCST sessions to participate. The conclusion suggests that “91% of…

A 2014 quasi-experimental (controlled) study with cross-over design with 31 individuals.  Results suggest: “Both control rest and the intervention gave significant increase of SDNN, but while the increase was +15% (P < 0.05) in the control period, it was +32% (P < 0.05) in the test period. TP value did not increase…

A 2008 case study showing how craniosacral fascial therapy helped a 9-year-old boy with asthma who developed respiratory symptoms at two months of age. “Exactly five weeks after this treatment started, his asthma doctor reexamined him. She found his lungs to be clear of any wheezing or other obstructions. His peak flow…

A 2009 case study showing how craniosacral fascial therapy helped a 27-month-old boy with “extreme hyperactive behavior.” After treatment “His mother said he became a different child. He was calmer and more attentive and ceased his head banging, screeching, and ear pulling. He also stopped biting other children and picking at his…

A 2012 feasibility study with 60 randomized individuals completing 8 weeks of therapy.  Results suggests: “A significant difference, favoring CST, was noted by treatment group in mean headache hours per day 30 days post treatment (1.89 vs. 2.78, p=0.003). HIT-6 scores decreased significantly in both groups, but without a between-group difference…

A 2012 review of available literature regarding CST supporting its potential efficacy. “A previously conducted systematic review did not obtain valid scientific evidence that CST was beneficial to patients…. This review revealed the paucity of CST research in patients with different clinical pathologies. CST assessment is feasible in RCTs and has the…

Craniosacral still point technique (CSPT) used for 9 older adults with dementia to determine effects. “Findings indicated a statistically significant reduction in M-CMAI total and subscale scores during the intervention period. This reduction continued during post-intervention for subscale scores of physical non-aggression and verbal agitation.” READ PUBMED ABSTRACT HERE References: Research: Linda…

2009 database search for articles on cranial bone misalignment and vertigo using the following keywords: “vertigo diagnosis and treatment, craniosacral therapy, temporal bones, cranial bone mobility, Upledger, and temporomandibular disorders.” The articles found and evaluated suggest “that craniosacral therapy is a powerful evaluative and treatment modality for vertigo patients who have not found relief from medical treatments.” READ PUBMED ABSTRACT…

2007 study combining craniosacral therapy and acupuncture as adjunct therapies for adult asthma. Study findings suggest: “When treatment was compared with the control group, statistically treatment was significantly better than the control group in improving asthma quality of life, whereas reducing medication use with pulmonary function test results remained the same….

2013 randomized, multicenter, single blind, controlled trial conducted in Sweden regarding the effects of craniosacral therapy as adjunct therapy to standard treatment for pregnant women with pelvic girdle pain. The trail suggests that “Lower morning pain intensity and less deteriorated function was seen after craniosacral therapy in conjunction with standard treatment…

Questionnaire completed by 46 families of physically-impaired children between 0-18: “Our study shows that families perceive improvements in all areas of daily functioning after using CST” READ PUBMED ABSTRACT HERE References: Research: McManus Vicki and Gliksten Maggie. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. November 2007, 13(9): 929-930. doi:10.1089/acm.2007.0521.

2012 HIT-6 Questionnaire completed by twenty participants, experiencing migraines at least twice a month, while receiving six craniosacral treatments over the span of four weeks. Results of the questionnaire indicated that “Immediately after treatments and one month afterwards there was significant lowering in HIT-6 scorings compared with prior to treatment.” READ…

This 2011 study looks at the effects of craniosacral therapy on fibromyalgia patients, showing that “at 6 months after a 25-week treatment period, patients in the intervention group showed a significant improvement in their levels of state anxiety, trait anxiety, pain, quality of life and Pittsburgh sleep quality index.” READ FULL…

2007-2008 study looks at whether Upledger-style craniosacral has any effect on health conditions treated in age ranges of neonates to 68 years old. Of 157 patients, “outcome by diagnostic groups suggested that UCST is particularly effective for patients with headaches and migraine, neck and back pain, anxiety and depression, and unsettled…

“The Upledger Institute has provided two week intensive treatment for Vietnam veterans suffering from Post Traumatic Stress Disorders diagnosed by the Veteran’s Affairs (VA) medical division. These patients received psychological evaluation tests at the times of entry and exit into and out of the program. The intensive treatment was about six-seven…

2009 study showing that craniosacral therapy was found to be an effective means for treating lower urinary tract symptoms and improving quality of life in MS patients: READ PUBMED ABSTRACT HERE References: Research: Raviv G, Shefi S, Nizani D, Achiron A. “Effect of Craniosacral Therapy on Lower Urinary Tract Signs and Symptoms…