Does Craniosacraltherapy Combined With Exercises That Focuses om Respiration and Posture in the Upper Body Have an Effect on Xerostomia and Other Late Sequelae on People Who Has Been Suffering From Cancer in Mouth and Throat?

Summary

The current study aims to assess the efficacy of manual treatment with craniosacral therapy of fascial tissue in throat, neck, cranial and mouth region, on radiation and/or surgery-induced salivary gland hypofunction and xerostomia in patients who have received surgery and/or radiation therapy because of cancer in the throat and mouth regions.

The hypothesis of this project is based on a recent clinical case treated by me: I practice as a physiotherapist and craniosacral therapist in a private clinic. The patient in question was treated with craniosarcal techniques (techniques that, in a broad sense, mobilizes the fascia, including meninges, dura, sleeves around the nerve-tissue etc.). He suffered from xerostomia and hyposaliva after neck surgery and radiation therapy four years prior to my treatment. During the second treatment of fascial release of the scar tissue and of the tissue around atlas, axis and occiput the patient strongly felt that his saliva started flowing. He received an additional 3 treatments, with fascial release techniques in neck, throat meninges and mouth regions, and three months after his last treatment the patient still reported much better production of saliva than before start of treatment. Furthermore, the patient reported significant gains in ease of speaking and eating. This project aim to assess if this was only an isolated event or if craniosacral therapy could be an evidence based method to increase saliva production and decrease xerostomia for patients after surgical and radiation therapy.

Conditions

• Xerostomia Following Radiotherapy
• Xerostomia Following in Neck or Head After Cancer Surgery
• Other Late Sequelae Following Radiotherapy and Cancer Surgery in Neck or Head

Interventions

OTHER

Craniosacral Therapy

Manual treatment, 5 grams, on the airway system, the throat, the neck, the meninges, the cranial nerve sleeves, the visceral cranium, and the soft tissue in the mouth.

OTHER

Exercices Targeting Upper Posture and Respiration

Exercises targeting upper posture and breathing exercises. The exercises is given when the therapist has reached some anatomical milestones in the treatment protocol. For example, an exercise with diaphragmatic breathing is given after manual treatment of diaphragma.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Danish Cancer Society

  collaborator OTHER

• DLHM - Danish Society for Mouth and Throat Cancer

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• Danish Network for Mouth and Throat Cancer

  collaborator UNKNOWN

• Cathrine Rahbek

  lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

• Cathrine T Rahbek, Cst t · Rahbek KST

Study Design

Allocation

NA

Purpose

TREATMENT

Masking

NONE

Model

SINGLE_GROUP

Eligibility

Min Age

18 Years

Max Age

81 Years

Sex

ALL

Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Timeline & Regulatory

Start

2022-03-18

Primary Completion

2023-01-20

Completion

2023-11-27

Countries

• Denmark

Study Locations