Improvements in Developmental Delay in a Baby Girl Following Chiropractic Care

The Journal of Clinical Chiropractic Pediatrics released a case study on March 11, 2022, documenting the improvement in developmental delay of a baby girl who underwent chiropractic care. The study reports that this is a common issue and between 1-3% of children under five are affected by developmental delay.

The study begins by noting that "Child development can be subdivided into four domains, including: motor, speech and language, social/emotional and cognitive." In each of these domains, there are milestones that a child should achieve to be within a normal range. When the child fails to reach a milestone when compared to other children at the same age, that child is consider developmentally delayed in that specific domain area. When a child under five years of age is delayed in two or more domains, the child can be determined to have global developmental delay.

In this case, a 3-year 4-month old toddler girl was brought to the chiropractic clinic by her mother. Her mother was concerned that her daughter had a "communication delay and walking delay." The girl’s mother also reported that her daughter had learning difficulties, difficulties achieving milestones, digestion and feeding problems, general co-ordination and balance issues, crawling and walking delays, hip and leg co-ordination problems, as well as flexibility, and low muscle tone problems.

A chiropractic examination was performed where it was determined that vertebral subluxations were present. With the mother’s consent, age-appropriate specific chiropractic adjustments were begun.

On the second visit, the mother reported that her daughter had slept better after her first adjustment, and she felt that her daughter was walking better as well. By the third visit, the mother reported that her little girl was calmer and was visibly walking better. As care continued, the girl continued to show improvement in her speech, her movement, her walking, and her sleep.

The study authors listed all the various improvements achieved by this girl. The list included, "sleep quality improved, waking brighter, general mood improvements, general behavior improvements, number of meltdowns decreased, posture improved, improved walking and general movement, pain or discomfort has decreased, strength/stamina has increased, fruit and vegetable intake increased, cold or flu frequency/duration decreased, mental energy levels increased, vitality improved, fewer run down days, physical energy improved, bounced back better from fatigue/stress."

In commenting on her daughter’s improvement, the mother stated, "I feel my child is healthier and has stronger resilience. I feel my child has a higher level of health overall."

In describing the link between child development and chiropractic, the authors explain, "Chiropractors and chiropractic students recognize that the central focus of chiropractic care is to assess for and reduce nerve interference, caused by vertebral subluxation, to enhance nervous system function and support the optimization of health and well-being." They further define subluxation by saying, "A vertebral subluxation has been recognized as a complex of functional and/or structural changes in articulations of the spine and pelvis that compromise neural integrity and may influence organ system function and general health."