Truths About Brain Injury
Serious Complications for Mild Brain Injury
Hello, my name is Dr. Brent Furnish. I am a Board Certified Chiropractic Neurologist. I am Board Certified in both Chiropractic and Neurology (Functional) in the state of Kentucky. As a “Functional Neurologist,” I specialize in the rehabilitation and restoration of people’s brain function and lives.
The following blog is very personal to me. My father acquired a brain injury in a motor vehicle accident in 1990 and passed away from the consequences of that brain injury six years later in 1996. My best friend who was a general practicing Chiropractor received a brain injury in 2015 from a fall and did not even hit his head. He died approximately 8-9 months later.
Special note: Both these men, oddly enough, were 69 years old when they died from their brain injuries. They aged 20 years (I have pictures in my office) after their brain injury, and they looked 89 years old when they died. Lastly, a friend who was 46 years of age just passed away after falling down a set of stairs in his house over a year ago.
The big question is why did these good men not get better and die in a short time after their brain injuries.
Why does a brain injury sometimes result in death for some people?
Reason #1:
Most physicians, physical therapists, and chiropractors have little or no training in the brain and its function, much less on how to rehabilitate and restore the brain to its optimal function. One of my best Medical Doctor friends related to me several years ago, “Most Medical Doctors only have 2 weeks of Neurology in school.”
Reason #2:
Medical Neurologist does not specialize in functional neurology and rehabilitation of the brain (not problem-directed care), but care is symptom directed with medication. Therefore, they are not “fixing the problem of the brain injury but only suppressing the symptoms with medication.”
Reason #3:
Physical therapists and general practicing chiropractors have very little training in the brain and central nervous system. Physical therapists attempt to treat brain problems with orthopedic rehabilitation (that is what they specialize in). Chiropractors treat with spinal manipulation.
My Professional Opinion
My professional opinion is you should never use spinal manipulation to treat a person who has suffered from a brain injury. There is no scientific evidence that spinal manipulation helps patients suffering from brain injuries.
The Solution to the Problem
After 26 years of practicing functional neurology and seeing hundreds of brain injuries or concussion cases, I can honestly say functional neurological rehabilitation is the most logical, scientific, and rational way to approach these cases and it achieves the best results by addressing the underlying problem resulting from the brain injury or concussion.
The Lesson Learned
What is popular is not always right and what is right is not always popular. The men with brain injuries mentioned above died because they simply did not receive the care they needed to “get them well and keep them well.”
