Post-concussion symptoms: what upper cervical research has looked at

The scans after the fall or the accident came back clear. Months later, the headaches, the dizziness and the fog are still there.

How we approach post-concussion symptoms →

Illustration: a clear model of the human body with the spine and the top of the neck shown in blue

When symptoms outlast the injury, people are often told to rest and wait, and then to wait some more. A blow hard enough to injure the brain also moves the head on the top of the neck, which is why some upper cervical researchers have followed people with lingering post-concussion symptoms. Every study on this page is a case report or a small case series.

4 studies on this page

Designs: Case series, case report
Published: 2004 to 2019

Where these studies sit, by design and year

4 studies, published 2004 to 2019. Strongest design: case series.

the studies

What each study looked at

Strongest study design first. The dots show the design, from a single case (one dot) to a controlled trial (four). How to read this library

Case series2019Low-force upper cervicalNot indexed in PubMed

Two women with lingering symptoms after a head injury

Who and how many: Two women diagnosed with post-concussion syndrome: a 16-year-old with vertigo, brain fog and headaches for three months after a fall from a horse, and a 30-year-old with migraine and vertigo after striking her head on the steering wheel in a car accident. Neither had vertigo or headaches before the injury.
What was measured: How often and how strongly the headaches and vertigo came, during low-force upper cervical care and at a one-year follow-up. Both were under a neurologist's care, and earlier general chiropractic care had not changed their symptoms.
What was found: Both reported fewer and milder headache and vertigo episodes soon after starting care. At one year the 30-year-old reported no headache or dizziness. The 16-year-old's symptoms came back and settled again after a further correction.
Limits: Two people, symptoms reported by the patients, and no comparison group. Post-concussion symptoms often ease with time, which a case series can't separate from care. The author calls for more studies.

Read the abstract on the journal's site → Source 1

Case report2011Atlas OrthogonalNot indexed in PubMed

A 23-year-old woman with positional vertigo and headaches after a fall

Who and how many: One woman, 23, five months after a slip and fall that caused a concussion. She had a long history of headaches that grew worse after the injury, and positional vertigo that began right after it. X-rays ruled out a fracture.
What was measured: Upper neck tenderness and leg length lying down, used to decide when a correction was needed, and X-ray analysis of the misalignment, during Atlas Orthogonal care.
What was found: The authors report that her clinical findings suggest the care was beneficial for her vertigo, headaches and post-concussion symptoms. The abstract gives no scores or timeline.
Limits: One person, and the published abstract does not report measured results. Read it as a description of an approach, not as evidence of an effect.

Read the abstract on the journal's site → Source 2

Case report2011Atlas Orthogonal, by instrumentNot indexed in PubMed

A 76-year-old woman with ten years of seizures after a concussion

Who and how many: One woman, 76, with seizures for ten years after a head injury, along with fluctuating blood pressure, visual disturbances, reduced hearing and an unsteady, wide-based walk.
What was measured: Her walking pattern, seizures, blood pressure and hearing over two months of Atlas Orthogonal care, delivered with the Atlas Orthogonal percussion instrument.
What was found: Her walking pattern looked more normal right after the first correction. Over two months she reported no further seizures, steadier blood pressure and better hearing.
Limits: One person, and much of the result is her own report. The authors say more research is needed.

Read the abstract on the journal's site → Source 3

Case report2004Upper cervical

A 23-year-old man after a head-first fall: seizures, sleep, mood and migraine

Who and how many: One man, 23, who landed on his head in a pole vault fall at 17. Over the next six years he developed rapid-cycling bipolar disorder, seizures, a sleep disorder, neck and back pain and migraines, and saw many physicians.
What was measured: Thermography and X-rays of the upper neck, then assessments by his neurologist at the start, at 2 months and at 4 months of upper cervical care.
What was found: After one month he reported no seizures or manic episodes and better sleep. At four months his migraines had gone from about three a week to two a month. At seven months he reported no symptoms, and he remained free of them 18 months later.
Limits: One person. The author proposes a link between the fall, the upper neck and his symptoms, but a single case can't establish it.

Read the abstract on PubMed → Source 4

before you draw conclusions

What this research does and doesn't tell you

Five people across four reports, with no comparison group, and much of what was measured is what the patients reported. Post-concussion symptoms often ease with time, which reports like these can't separate from care. After any head injury, new or worsening symptoms (confusion, repeated vomiting, weakness, a severe or worsening headache) need emergency care first.

Published research can't predict what will happen for any one person, including you. Studies report averages and single stories; your nervous system is your own. That is why The Lazar Method^™ starts with measurement, not with a promise.

We measure first, so the answer is about you, not an average.

Before any correction we measure how your nervous system is regulating your body: heart rate variability, thermal and muscle tone scans, PostureIQ™, and digital X-ray of the upper neck. QSM3, the method used at our office, is a progression of NUCCA. Dr. Jonathan Lazar, D.C., or someone personally trained by him, will go over your scans and images with you.

If we can help, we'll tell you. If we can't, we'll help you find someone who can.

Talk it through on a 15-minute Clarity Call →

This page is educational and is not medical advice. Keep the doctors who know you in the loop.

citations

Sources

Chung J. 2019. Improvement in Post-Concussion Syndrome in Two Females Using Low-Force Upper Cervical Chiropractic Care: A Case Series & Review of the Literature Journal of Upper Cervical Chiropractic Research August 31, 2019:48-55. Not indexed in PubMed. Article page on vertebralsubluxationresearch.com
Mayheu A, Sweat M. 2011. Upper Cervical Chiropractic Care of a Patient with Post Concussion Syndrome, Positional Vertigo, and Headaches Journal of Upper Cervical Chiropractic Research January 6, 2011:3-9. Not indexed in PubMed. Article page on vertebralsubluxationresearch.com
Sweat R, Adams T. 2011. Resolution of Post-Concussion Seizures Following Atlas Orthogonal Technique Journal of Upper Cervical Chiropractic Research November 3, 2011:66-70. Not indexed in PubMed. Article page on vertebralsubluxationresearch.com
Elster EL. 2004. Treatment of bipolar, seizure, and sleep disorders and migraine headaches utilizing a chiropractic technique. J Manipulative Physiol Ther 27(3):E5. PubMed 15129207 · DOI 10.1016/j.jmpt.2003.12.027

Titles are quoted exactly as published. Sources checked 2026-11-03.

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