Multiple sclerosis: what upper cervical research has looked at

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People living with MS often look for anything that might help with the parts of the day their medication doesn't reach. One published study has looked at upper cervical care in people with MS, and a small pilot from the same research group compared atlas X-rays in people with and without MS. Both are described here in full, including their limits.

2 studies on this page

Designs: Before-and-after study, pilot comparison study
Published: 2013 to 2015

Where these studies sit, by design and year

2 studies, published 2013 to 2015. Strongest design: cohort, pilot or before-and-after study.

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

Before-and-after study2015Upper cervical, C1 and C2

77 people with multiple sclerosis and a venous drainage problem

Who and how many: 77 people with multiple sclerosis and chronic cerebrospinal venous insufficiency (CCSVI), a proposed problem with blood draining from the brain and spinal cord.
What was measured: Upper neck X-ray measurements and a new set of symptom questions written for the study, before and after a four-month upper cervical care protocol focused on C1 and C2.
What was found: The X-ray measures of misalignment improved, and the before-and-after differences in symptoms were statistically significant.
Limits: No control group, and the symptom questions were new to this study. The authors call the results preliminary and say further studies are needed.

Read the abstract on PubMed → Source 1

Pilot comparison study2013Imaging only, no care givenNot indexed in PubMed

Atlas alignment in four people with MS, compared with four without

Who and how many: 4 people with MS and CCSVI (three women, one man), compared with 4 people of similar age without a neurodegenerative disease.
What was measured: Ultrasound of the neck veins (echo color Doppler), upper neck X-rays and thermal scanning. No care was given in this study.
What was found: The MS group showed different atlas alignment from the comparison group, including marked rotation of C1, and some compression of the veins from outside. The authors propose a link between severe C1 misalignment and that compression.
Limits: Eight people in total. It describes differences; it doesn't test care, and it can't show which came first.

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

before you draw conclusions

What this research does and doesn't tell you

The care study had no control group and used a symptom questionnaire written for that study. The pilot compared eight people's X-rays and gave no care. It does not show that upper cervical care changes the course of MS. MS care stays with your neurologist; anything we do would sit alongside it, never in place of it.

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

Mandolesi S, Marceca G, Moser J, Niglio T, d'Alessandro A, Ciccone MM, Zito A, Mandolesi D, d'Alessandro A, Fedele F. 2015. Preliminary results after upper cervical chiropractic care in patients with chronic cerebro-spinal venous insufficiency and multiple sclerosis. Ann Ital Chir 86(3):192-200. PubMed 26228993
Mandolesi S, Marceca G, Conicello S, Harris E. 2013. Upper Cervical Vertebral Subluxation in Multiple Sclerosis Subjects with Chronic Cerebrospinal Venous Insufficiency: A Pilot Study Journal of Upper Cervical Chiropractic Research September 23, 2013:65-70. Not indexed in PubMed. Article page on vertebralsubluxationresearch.com

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

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