{
  "abstract": "Introduction: Chiropractic research has traditionally focused on subjective, pain-related outcomes; however, emerging evidence suggests that chiropractic care may also influence neurophysiological functioning. This pilot study aimed to assess the feasibility of a neurophysiological assessment battery and explore differences in brain and autonomic nervous system (ANS) responses following genuine versus sham chiropractic adjustments.\n\nMethods: In this pilot quasi-experimental, sham-controlled trial, 30 adults received a single session of either genuine or sham instrument-assisted chiropractic care. Resting-state electroencephalography (EEG) and electrocardiography (ECG) were collected at baseline, immediately post-intervention, and one week later. Feasibility outcomes included study procedures and participant blinding. Exploratory outcomes included changes in EEG functional connectivity (FC) and heart rate variability (HRV).\n\nResults: The study protocol was feasible to implement, and participant blinding was successful. Compared with sham care, genuine chiropractic care was associated with increased resting-state FC within a broadly distributed cluster spanning cortical regions of the brain’s extended triple-network, including the medial frontoparietal, dorsolateral frontoparietal, and mid-cingulo-insular networks, in the delta and theta frequency bands. No between-group differences were observed for HRV measures.\n\nDiscussion: These findings suggest that genuine chiropractic adjustments may differentially influence resting-state functional connectivity within large-scale brain networks compared with sham care. Although no effects on HRV were observed, the neurophysiological findings support further investigation in a fully powered randomized controlled trial to confirm these effects and determine their clinical significance.\n\nTrial registration and funding: This trial was prospectively registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05249530) and funded by Life University (Marietta, GA, USA).",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Life University , , ,",
    "Peachy Keen Chiropractic , , ,"
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 4,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Stephanie Sullivan"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Margaret Sliwka"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Emily Drake"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Tyson M. Perez"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2xz2fc0jjwh9q.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.3389/fnhum.2026.1984309",
  "fulltext_url": "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13727520/?tool=EBI",
  "id": "2xz2fc0jjwh9q",
  "issns": [
    "1662-5161"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13727520",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "Original Research"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2805|Functional Brain Connectivity Studies"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7223057723",
  "pdf_url": "https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC13727520/pdf/?tool=EBI",
  "pmcid": "PMC13727520",
  "pmid": "42978747",
  "published": "2026-10-20",
  "publisher": "Frontiers Media SA",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2xz2fc0jjwh9q.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-04T15:20:45Z",
      "native_id": "PMC:PMC13727520",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/PMC/PMC13727520"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-11-06T12:23:23Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13727520",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2026.1984309"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "openalex:2805|Functional Brain Connectivity Studies",
      "subfield": "neuroscience"
    }
  ],
  "title": "Between-group differences in resting-state functional connectivity within the brain’s extended triple-network following genuine and sham chiropractic adjustments: a quasi-experimental pilot trial",
  "title_text": "Between-group differences in resting-state functional connectivity within the brain’s extended triple-network following genuine and sham chiropractic adjustments: a quasi-experimental pilot trial",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-11-07T12:20:42Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/2xz2fc0jjwh9q",
  "venue": "Frontiers in human neuroscience",
  "versions": []
}