When you are looking for effective treatment options for spinal muscle atrophy you should consider alternative and complementary therapies too. These refer to different types of treatments that are regarded as being unorthodox, according to followers of traditional western medicine. These treatment options for spinal muscle atrophy are aimed at treating the symptoms. The drawback of these techniques is that they have little or no scientific basis as to why they are effective.
The truth is that while many of these unconventional treatments cannot be justified by science, they can alleviate symptoms. So, it is important to know about the possible risks and complications that may arise from such treatments especially when the benefits they claim to offer are very impressive. So, one must have an open mind regarding such complementary and alternative treatments, even though it is very unlikely that these will cure spinal muscular atrophy.
Some complementary treatment options for spinal muscle atrophy include the following:
1. Acupuncture
This treatment method is a 2000-year old practice that includes the insertions of needles into energy points in one’s body. The earlier Chinese form of acupuncture has now been replaced by a western form that focuses not simply on energy points, but also an anatomical simulation of one’s nervous system in localized parts. There have been random clinical trials conducted using this procedure and these have yielded mixed results. As long as the needles being used are sterile, there are no risks.
2. Massage
This involves applying pressure on body parts, either manually or by using mechanical aids. Infant massage is very popular as it is supposed to improve weight and passage of food. Human touch or massage stimulates better blood flow, fluid drainage and relaxes tense muscles. Before massage is done, the SMA patient needs to be screened properly.
3. Osteopathy
This method is used when medical conditions are sought to be treated by massaging the muscles and skeleton. Osteopathy uses methods to move the spine and other body parts like physiotherapy and has been successful in treating lower back pains. Patients with SMA may develop scoliosis and osteopathy can reduce its progression. Only registered practitioners have the license to perform this method. Since people with SMA may have low bone density, this technique should be done very carefully after discussion with a medical team who will check for bone density levels.
4. Autophagy
This is a method by which the cells can recycle components that have been damaged or are no longer required. This “cleaning system” could work as an alternative treatment for SMA. But if this autophagy becomes overactive, it may end up damaging cells severely and even destroy them completely.
5. Homeopathy
This method has been used worldwide for treating a variety of ailments, and there have been many random trials to see if it will give positive results. However, none of these studies has investigated neuromuscular diseases in particular, and there are no positive proofs yet. While homeopathy treatments are by and large safe, there are some instances where these may react with some medications, and very rarely will they have dangerous side-effects.
So, there are plenty of complementary and alternative treatments options available for different medical conditions, and when you search for spinal muscle atrophy treatments you will be surprised at the number of options. While you must always have an open mind, you should also know about the possible risks of such alternative therapies. Sometimes, people are discouraged to seek medical help because they think these therapies will work. Such people often end up missing out on vital symptom-monitoring facilities. So, if you decide to opt for these you need to make sure your practitioner understands how spinal muscular atrophy has affected you and what your ongoing treatments and medicines are; you should ideally consult your team before choosing any approach.