Torticollis

Torticollis means "twisted neck." It is a condition where the head is turned to one side and the chin is tilted to the opposite side. It generally presents a headache and turning the head from one side to the other is quite difficult. Some people may have it since birth but the usual cause is nerve or muscle injury. Along with pain relievers and anti-spasm drugs, torticollis generally responds well to massage therapy.

Torticollis is associated with a diverse group of conditions showing abnormal position or twisting of the neck muscles. A neck that is turned to one side is a usual occurrence of torticollis. While the specific reason behind torticollis is unknown, listed below are possible circumstances in which it could evolve:

Torticollis is acute when it s caused by an injury or trauma
It may be hereditary. The person who has inherited the disorder may not have the symptoms at birth, it may gradually occur.
Spasmodic torticollis is that which is of genetic in origin.
It may have been a result of side effect from certain drugs or medicines

Spasmodic torticollis, also known as cervical dystonia, is comprised of 3 forms of neuromuscular dysfunction: clonic, wherein there is head shaking which is jerky or intermittent; tonic, whose movement is sustained; or combination of the two called mixed.

Acute torticollis usually resolves in 2 weeks. Injection of Botox generally helps in relieving the spasms because it functions to paralyze the neck muscles temporarily. However, the neck muscles in clonic or tonic contractions are quite delicate, hence extreme caution must be observed when injecting such toxic drug. Obviously, most people would want to keep away from the side effects and adverse reactions that may come along in using Botox. Fortunately, painful contractions of torticollis may be relieved by massage therapy.

Massage therapy for torticollis involves the application of comfortable heat, passive stretching, massage, and traction to loosen up and decrease spasticity of the neck muscles, particularly the sternocleidomastoid. It is the muscle that has the function of turning and tilting the head on either side and this is the muscle that is mostly affected in torticollis.

Sports massage therapy is good for torticollis because it involves stretching maneuvers that relieves contraction of neck muscles by lengthening them. Myofascial release may improve and increase the range of motion of affected muscles.

A massage therapist should ask a torticollis patient if he has just received a Botox injection that same day. This should be done because Botox is a paralyzing agent that should only focus on the affected muscles. Massage, on the other hand, can spread the Botox toxin to other parts surrounding the injection site and may cause paralysis of the neighboring muscles.

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