Last week, Sherman College hosted Dr. Julie Mayer Hunt for a President’s Assembly. I had heard she was a very intelligent and captivating speaker, so I was excited. My expectations were certainly surpassed.
Dr. Hunt is part of a group that is developing a protocol for taking/reading standing Cervicocranial junction MRI scans. This is a substantial accomplishment since most MRIs are taken in the supine position (lying on the back) and don't directly address this area. Laying down for an MRI chances the dynamics of the body’s response to gravity/weight bearing, and may affect the accuracy of detecting certain spinal abnormality.
This protocol is also substantial for understanding the upper cervical region. This is a key region for chiropractic analysis. With MRI studies in hand, chiropractors such as Dr. Hunt are modifying their thrust to account for conditions that can be missed with Xrays alone. Some examples of conditions include congenital malformations, Arnold chiari, invagination ectopia, as well as general torsion put on the spinal cord due to misalignment of the spine.
During the presentation, some of her pre and post MRIs studies were shown. It was incredible to visualize the soft tissue changes that occurred during her MRI guided adjustment. I wish I could share some of the images, but she requested that they not be photographed.
By the end of the presentation, many students including myself were excited and curious to find out more about this topic. I hope that Dr. Hunt will consider returning to Sherman for information about this topic.
