Symptoms of FDS
While the neurological condition known as Functional Disconnection Syndrome may not be familiar to you, the many names of its symptoms will be. These range from chronic pain, migraines and dizziness, to learning and behavioral difficulties and depression.
Symptoms tend to be related to a specific side of functional neurological weakness, either in the left or right side of the brain. This is called hemisphericity.
Left Hemisphericity
Symptoms generally associated with left hemisphericity include difficulty with: speech, reading, object identification, vocabulary, fine motor skills and depression.
Learning Disabilities are neurological disorders that affect the brain’s ability to receive, process and store information.
Some examples of these disabilities are: Dyslexia-a reading problem Dyscalculia-math processing problem Dysgraphia-disablility in writing. Dyspraxia-difficulty with motor skills.
Depression is frequently a left brain dysfunction and not just a problem of the psyche. It causes changes to the brain which can be seen on an MRI, including shrinking hippocampal changes that may affect memory.
Right Hemisphericity
The right hemisphere is involved when we see symptoms of:
AD/HD- characterized by inattention, over activity and impulsivity.
OCD- characterized by intrusion of thoughts and or repetitive behaviors merging in an effort to diffuse anxiety.
Tourette Syndrome- characterized by involuntary movements and sounds called “tics”.
Asperger’s Syndrome and Autism- characterized by verbal and nonverbal communication difficulties, unconventional repetitive activities and interests, and impaired social interaction skills.
Why What We Do Works So Well!
Traditional approaches of diagnosis and treatment for the symptoms of FDS, including educational, psychological and pharmaceutical interventions have had limited success. This is because FDS is a neurological condition and not a psychological or educational problem.
Many other neurological conditions such as chronic pain, dizziness, migraines, as well as learning and behavioral disorders are currently diagnosed by symptom. Symptoms alone do not give enough information to make an accurate diagnosis.
An example would be trying to diagnose an illness based solely on the symptom of a cough. A cough can be something as simple as a dry throat or as serious as lung cancer. Without further diagnostic testing it would be impossible to determine the actual illness causing the symptom.
It can be equally as dangerous to diagnose complex neurological conditions by considering only the symptoms.
Chiropractic neurology provides a safe and effective avenue for diagnosing and treating FDS.
Process for Diagnosing Functional Disconnection Syndrome
Step 1: Determine what part of the brain is working and what part is not. This may be accomplished by looking at the patient history, by physical exam, or by using advanced instrumentation or diagnostic technologies.
Step 2: Determine the origin of the functional breakdown.
Step 3: Determine how the original area of functional breakdown and the resulting effected areas can be rehabilitated. In other words, what specific part of the brain or nervous system should be exercised to facilitate repair; and which treatment method will be the most effective.
If you or someone you care about suffers from a condition caused by Functional Disconnect Syndrome, Dr. Charles is uniquely qualified to help.
Please call (410) 398-2108 today. |
