What is manual muscle testing and applied kinesiology and why should I care?

What is manual muscle testing and applied kinesiology and why should I care?
Manual muscle testing (MMT) is a method that uses the strength and response of a muscle to assess body function. Applied kinesiology is an art rather than a precise method of using a manual muscle test to assess a condition in the body. Applied Kinesiology (AK) is a system that assesses the structural, chemical, and mental aspects of health using manual muscle testing combined with other standard diagnostic methods according to the International College of Applied Kinesiology.

A brief history of manual muscle testing and applied kinesiology:
Manual muscle testing was developed in 1915 by Robert W. Lovett, MD when trying to determine muscle weakness in polio patients. Then, in the 1940s, Henry and Florence Kendall published a book called “Muscle Test and Function” that defined specific muscle tests to isolate each specific muscle. Frank Chapman, DO first described small tender nodules just under the skin that he linked to organ system dysfunction in the 1920s. [1] These small tender nodules are called Chapman’s reflex points or neurolymphatic points, as they are called in AK. Dr. George Goodheart was a Michigan practicing chiropractor and the founder of AK. Dr. Goodheart published the Applied Kinesiology Research Manual in 1964. He made many observations when performing muscle tests developed by the Kendalls in association with Chapman’s neurolymphatic points. Dr. Goodheart noted that certain muscles were related to Chapman’s neurolymphatic points. This correlation is used in AK to indicate an organ that may be stressed. A chiropractor named Terrance Bennett identified points in the body that he linked to the circulatory system that he called neurovascular reflex points in the 1930s. These neurovascular reflex points are also related to specific muscles. AK uses acupressure meridian points and cerebrospinal fluid flow in the treatment of dysfunction. Although the four methods mentioned above are used in AK, the main method of treating a dysfunctional or “weak” muscle is through chiropractic adjustment.

How are muscle tests used?
“… MMT may not only be a test of actual muscle strength, but it can also test the ability of the nervous system to adapt the muscle to the changing pressure of the examiner’s test. An optimally functioning nervous system will try immediately adapt the activity to meet the demands of the test. ” [2] There are several factors that can affect the response of the muscles to a manual muscle test. These can be structural (related to the nervous system), lymphatic, related to the vascular system, cerebrospinal fluid flow, or the acupuncture system. The goal of applied kinesiology and manual muscle testing is to address the root problem in the body. Chiropractic adjustment is the primary and initial treatment when using AK. There are times when a chiropractic adjustment does not solve the problem. AK can be used to further evaluate the body and determine if the problem is a stressed organ or body system.

According to a study published in 2008 in the Journal of Chiropractic and Osteopathy, one “reason for the addition of manual muscle testing to chiropractic diagnostic methods is that most of the other parameters of dysfunction identified in patients with back and neck pain do not have been shown to precede pain, if not only to accompany it. An important exception is muscle strength, which can predict future low back and neck pain in asymptomatic people. “[3]

Pain is an indicator that there is a problem in the body. However, pain is a symptom and not the underlying problem. Addressing the underlying problem is the only way to move the body toward proper function and away from dysfunction. Muscle weakness and imbalance is a much better indicator of dysfunction in the body than pain.

What else could a muscle test be telling me?
As mentioned above, there are several factors that can affect a muscle’s response to a muscle test. A correlation has been shown between weakness in certain muscles and problems in an associated organ. A study published in the Journal of Manipulative and Physiological Therapeutics in 2004 reported the case of a young man with low back pain that could not be resolved with oral anti-inflammatory agents or local cortisone injections. The patient then tried chiropractic adjustments which did not solve the problem. Through the evaluation of AK, the author was able to identify a congenital anomaly of the large intestine that the patient initially forgot to identify. This abnormality was the main cause of the young man’s low back pain. After properly addressing the large intestine, the back pain subsided. [4]

Manual muscle testing and applied kinesiology are evaluation methods used in conjunction with other more typical diagnostic tools to determine the cause of dysfunction in the body. The body has a very powerful ability to heal itself when given the opportunity. The cessation of pain and the identification and elimination of dysfunction increase the body’s ability to heal itself.

References:
1. Chapman’s reflex points. (North Dakota). Retrieved October 19, 2015, from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chapman_reflex_points

2. Cuthbert, SC and Goodheart, GJ (2007). On the reliability and validity of manual muscle tests: a literature review. Chiropractic and Osteopathy Chiropr Osteopat, fifteen(1), 4.

3. Schmitt, WH and Cuthbert, SC (2008). Common mistakes and clinical guidelines for manual muscle testing: “the arm test” and other inaccurate procedures. Chiropractic and Osteopathy Chiropr Osteopat, sixteen(1), 16.

4. Case, M. (2002). Evaluation of Chapman’s neurolymphatic reflexes through kinesiology: report of a case of low back pain and congenital intestinal anomaly. Journal of manipulative and physiological therapeutics, 66-72. doi: 10.1016 / j.jmpt.2003.11.009