Neural Therapy involves the injection of a common local anaesthetic, into various but very specific areas. It is based on the theory (According to Ferdinand Huneke, M.D. the founder of Neural Therapy) that trauma can produce long-standing disturbances in the electrochemical function of tissues. Among the types of tissues affected by trauma include scars, nerves or a cluster of nerves called ganglions. A correctly administered Neural Therapy injection can often instantly and lastingly resolve chronic long standing illness and chronic pain.
Neural Therapy (NT) uses injections of short-acting local anesthetics (mainly procaine) for diagnosis and treatment of chronic pain conditions and functional diseases [1]. According to Huneke, NT is classified into three main approaches. Firstly, local treatment techniques administer procaine directly or close to affected structures (e.g. infiltration into myofascial trigger points). Secondly, segmental techniques deliver procaine to structures innervated by the same spinal segment as the symptomatic area (e.g. dermatome quaddels, injections at muscles, joints and ganglia). Finally, interference field techniques infiltrate procaine into areas of subclinical chronic inflammation (often located in scars, fractures, teeth, sinuses and intestines) outside the respective anatomical segment.
One of the very special and unique qualities of neural therapy, specifically with the use of procaine, is that procaine is metabolized into DMAE and PABA, which are nutritive to the nerves, act as co-factors to help facilitate metabolism, offer anti-oxidant support, and have known anti-aging qualities.
How does Neural Therapy work?
It has been demonstrated that the cells in scar tissue have a different membrane potential from that of normal body cells. Whenever a cell has lost its normal membrane potential, ion pumps in the cell wall stop working, with an interruption of the bio-electric field in that area meaning that abnormal minerals and toxic substances accumulate inside the cell. As a result, the cell loses the ability to restore homeostasis. A local anaesthetic acts at the cell wall to allow the ion pumps to resume normal action and restore the membrane potential. This is how Neural Therapy corrects the bioelectric disturbance at a specific site or nerve ganglion. By reestablishing the normal electrical condition of nerves and cellular tissue, the disturbed functions are also restored to normality, and a return to health is then restored to the level that is anatomically still possible. In Neural Therapy the site that is being treated can be away from the area in the body that is not functioning properly. For example, a scar on the tonsillar tissue can affect the low back. This is possible because of the vast network of nerves referred to as the Autonomic Nervous System.
Neural Therapy in its simplest form is intra dermal injection of those scars, tattoos, or piercings which are believed to be causing an interference field or disruption of the autonomic nervous system. The local anesthetic is injected in such a way as to produce a linear wheal over the interference field of approx. 0.7 cc of solution per cm of scar. The location of the interference field can be in the vicinity of the patient’s pain or in an entirely different location and the therapeutic benefits range from gradual improvement after repeated treatments versus immediate complete relief of symptoms[2].
The Autonomic Nervous System
The autonomic system provides a vast network of electrical circuits. It basically controls the vital processes everywhere in our body, it regulates our breathing, circulation, body temperature, digestion, metabolism, hormone formation and distribution. It causes your heart to beat and your lungs to breathe automatically, even when you are asleep. It does in fact control all of the numerous automatic processes. Virtually every cell in your body is connected not only to each other through the autonomic nervous system but is also in large part controlled by your autonomic nervous system.
Neurophysiologists have shown that scar tissue can create an abnormal electrical signal. In turn this signal is transmitted throughout the rest of your body via the autonomic nervous system. An agent (generally a local anaesthetic) delivered by direct injection into scars ( as the scar can produce an “interference field”) or through other nerves that travel into deeper scars through tiny tubules in the cellular matrix to these areas of bioelectrical disturbance for treatment. As a result, this is capable of eliminating autonomic regulatory dysfunctions. Since the autonomic nervous system is viewed as the master controller of the body, Neural Therapy can have a profound impact on your condition and your ability to heal.
Cause of interference fields?
The cause of these interference fields can be far reaching. Generally, physical traumas from surgeries, sporting injuries, accidents, difficult child birth, dental procedures, vaccinations, emotional trauma etc. seems to convert an inactive interference field to one that creates a disturbance.
Neural Therapy does it work?
Even though we may radically change our lifestyle habits we may not actually obtain a level of health we hope for. This may be because something is interfering with the therapeutic process. It may well turnout that interference fields from a scar, physical trauma or sporting injury is disturbing the autonomic nervous system. Emotional imprints may also be a consideration.
To understand this more fully, one needs an understanding of the autonomic nervous system. Made up of two divisions; the sympathetic-“fight or flight” reflex and the parasympathetic-its job is to promote healing, digestion, repair etc.
A key feature of the sympathetic nervous system is that it links all of the cells of the body together, regulates the contraction and expansion of blood vessels, regulates the activity of the connective tissue necessary for regenerating body systems, and it regulates the voltage (membrane potential) across the cell wall in every cell in the body. While either the parasympathetic or sympathetic nervous system could be overly dominant and lead to symptoms, most people are stuck in an overly reactive sympathetic state, where the healing mechanism is impaired or “interfered with.”
How many treatments maybe typically necessary?
Generally we often see a partial improvement following each treatment. For chronic conditions 7-9 treatments are not uncommon over an extended time frame. Neural Therapy may for many patients allow the body to begin and access a therapeutic process which then help from other modalities can complete. Occasionally dramatic results are seen, but generally the experience is a gradual return to optimal health.
Neural therapy defined…
Neural therapy is a method of diagnosing and treating illness and pain caused by disturbances of the body’s electrophysiology referred to as “interference fields,” which are manifestations of cell membrane instability and typically trigger abnormal autonomic nervous system responses. Interference fields may be found in scars, autonomic ganglia, teeth, internal organs or other locations where local tissue irritation/damage exists.
What characterizes interference fields?
Interference fields have an altered electrical potential compared to that of surrounding tissue and seem to send confusing signals to the body’s nervous system. The body sometimes reacts in inappropriate ways, resulting in altered autonomic nervous system tone, chronic pain and/or dysfunction.
Interference fields can cause referred pain
Interference fields can be found almost anywhere in the body and are often far from the part of the body experiencing symptoms. Examples of this can be an old appendix scar might causing migraine headache, or a wisdom tooth extraction scar may cause chronic low-back pain, tonsillar scar tissue altering immune response. For the most part, these relationships are unpredictable and interference fields may be located anywhere in the body.
How does neural therapy treat interference fields?
When an interference field is located, it may be treated by injecting it with a local anaesthetic. These anesthetics are cell membrane stabilizers and act on interference fields.
The effect of injecting the interference fields is immediate. There is sometimes sudden relief of symptoms—a “lightning response”— with a gradual improvement taking place over the next 24-36 hrs.
Interestingly, the term somatic dysfunction in Osteopathic literature by definition includes an autonomic nervous system component and behaves in every way like all other interference fields.
The classic treatment method is to infiltrate the interference field with dilute procaine or lidocaine. The rationale for this treatment is that interference fields are caused by local cell membrane instability. The use of a local anaesthetic (through its cell membrane-stabilizing properties), restores the electrical potential, and helps normalize the physiology of the tissues.
How does neural therapy compare to prolotherapy?
Prolotherapy is an injection technique that stimulates the body to proliferate ligaments, tendons, muscles, and joint tissue. It may also be helpful at eliminating the pain of conditions such as arthritis, migraines, back pain, fibromyalgia, headaches, and many other painful conditions. Neural Therapy works at relieving pain by eliminating interference fields and helping the autonomic nervous system function normally. The two therapies are best used together when there are both musculoskeletal and autonomic nervous system problems involved in chronic pain.
What conditions can an interference field cause?
According to the German scientific literature interference fields can cause:
- Headaches
- Migraines
- Allergies
- Confusion
- Vertigo
- Hay Fever
- Optic Neuritis
- Asthma
- Chronic Pain
- Chronic Fatigue
- Tonsillitis
- Liver Disease
- Menstrual Pain
- Sinusitis
- Chronic Infections
- Menstrual Irregularity
- Gallbladder Disease
- Eczema
- Rheumatoid Arthritis
- Lupus
- Arthritis
…and many other
chronic degenerative conditions.
Treatment of Trigeminal Neuralgia Utilizing Neural Prolotherapy: A Case Report
We report a case of trigeminal neuralgia successfully treated with neural prolotherapy. The patient is a 70-year-old man with a 15-year history of trigeminal neuralgia refractory to pharmacologic treatment. After one treatment of neural prolotherapy the patient reported 5 months of complete resolution of his symptoms.