Info on Arnold-Chiari I, Idiopathic Syringomyelia, and Idiopathic Scoliosis: Causes and Insights

There is a multitude of information circulating in the professional domain as well as in communication channels that, if on the one hand it offers different perspectives, on the other, it can complicate understanding and decision making. Medical and health professionals have a responsibility commitment to the sick, to transfer information as clear and exhaustive as possible, to allow them to make the most appropriate decisions about their own health. The Institut Chiari & Siringomielia & Escoliosis de Barcelona (ICSEB) promotes education and the dissemination of knowledge, being aware that all this affects the patients’ decisions about her/his health and safety . It is on that account that we have prepared this open letter.  We would like to alert about the possible risks of relying on professionals who do not act with due prudence when offering a surgical treatment that they claim is the same as the one practiced by our team. As a matter of fact, they do not ha...

On June 12, 2018, the Institut Chiari & Siringomielia & Escoliosis de Barcelona (ICSEB) celebrated its 10 th anniversary. In this interview, founder and director, Dr. Miguel B. Royo Salvador , explains the fundamental stages through which the Institut has passed during its 10 years of excellence; which have led ICSEB to become a centre of international reference for the diagnosis, treatment and follow up of the Filum Disease.  – Good morning Dr. Royo Salvador. –  Good morning –  On the occasion of the 10 th anniversary of the Institut Chiari de Barcelona, I will ask you some questions. –  My pleasure –  For this occasion, the motto “10 years of excellence” was chosen. What do you want to express with this phrase? –  We want to highlight the work we have done since the inauguration of the Institut Chiari de Barcelona, with the objective of applying new medical concepts, which we have proposed through previous research. It...

We are happy to be able to celebrate our 10th anniversary and strive to continue to share our knowledge and experience regarding the Filum Disease to the benefit of patients everywhere. We want to thank everyone who put their trust in the Filum System® method and in our Institute.  Thank you for your lovely messages! Greetings from our patients Greetings from collaborators    Greetings from Patient Associations    

Since 2008, the ICSEB team has looked after patients from 61 countries, offering a worldwide unique treatment based on more than 40 years of experience. On 12 June 2008, the doors of the Institut Chiari & Siringomielia & Escoliosis de Barcelona (ICSEB) headquarters opened for the first time to the public. The opening ceremony, even though it only seemed to be a starting point, was actually also the culmination of an intense medical and scientific work that had started in the seventies led by Dr. Miguel B. Royo-Salvador, ICSEB’s Director and Founder. At the beginning of his investigation, Dr. Royo focused on the cause of idiopathic Syringomyelia , followed by that of the Arnold-Chiari Syndrome Type I and, later, the cause of idiopathic Scoliosis . He reached the conclusion that these three conditions, together with other associated ones, share a common point: the cause. According to scientific criteria, the origin of these conditions is an abnormal tension of a...

Cícera dos Santos tells the story of her sister, Maria do Socorro, diagnosed with Arnold-Chiari Syndrome Type I six years ago and operated by means of suboccipital craniotomy (SOC, decompression surgery) four years ago. After the surgery, the patient coninued to get worse: intensification of the pain, breathing difficulty, loss of strength in the upper and lower extremities and many other symptoms. Due to the deterioration of her clinic, she had to start using a wheelchair to move around since August 2017. In addition, Maria do Socorro lost her voice (*) in April of last year. For this reasons it is her sister, Cícera, who is telling her story in this video. Cícera explains that, after the craniotomy, her sister had started investigating about her pathology on the Internet and that she had found the ICSEB and it was like seeing the light at the end of the tunnel. From that moment, both of them started a big group effort to make the trip to Barcelona viable. ...

C. Merló (left) and Chiari patient E. Tarquini (right) French patient Emmanuelle Tarquini is on an important date in March, the “Women’s Month”. On the morning of the 19 th , she and her teammate, Cécilia Merló, left from harbour of Barcelona for Morocco, where they are taking part in the 27 th edition of the Rallye Aïcha des Gazelles , the only off-road competition worldwide exclusively for female competitors. In order to participate, Tarquini has had to face a much bigger challenge than riding in a 4×4 jeep for 2500 kilometres through the Moroccan desert. Her great test has been to overcome the difficulties caused by the Arnold-Chiari I Syndrome, that was bringing about insufferable headaches, also neck pain and paresthesias in her right body half.

These days, on 23 and 24 February 2017, the first edition of the “ Filum System ® Medical – Course for mental health professionals” is taking place in Barcelona. This course has been organized by the Filum Academy Barcelona ® in collaboration with Institut Chiari & Siringomielia & Escoliosis de Barcelona . The attendeesare mental health professionals who are interested in the “ Filum Disease ” and the psychological changes caused by this condition, as well as the role of psychotherapy in the post-sectioning of the filum terminale rehabilitation process.

The Institut Chiari & Siringomielia & Escoliosis de Barcelona team wishes you happy holidays and a great start into the New Year 2017! We hope to welcome you as readers again in the next year.  https://vimeo.com/195433856

We are pleased to announce that the director of Institut Chiari & Siringomielia & Escoliosis de Barcelona , Dr. Royo Salvador, has been invited to collaborate with the association Worldwide Syringomyelia & Chiari Task Force and to join the medical board of this association that is based in the United States. It aims to educate professionals and patients about the diagnoses that included in the organization’s name. At the same time, it is promoting a study of these diseases at international level under the auspices of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the National Organization for Rare Disorders in North America. We are happy to share this collaboration and we hope it will be bring fruitful and lasting results for the benefit of patients throughout the world. The invitation letter sent to Dr. Royo by the association: http://institutchiaribcn.com/commons//pdf/communication-letters/Letter-WSCTF-ICSEB.pdf

I would like to know if an Arnold Chiari I Syndrome can be operated on in an initial phase / I am being told that the descent of my cerebellar tonsils is not a Arnold Chiari I Syndrome, because it is of few millimetres, and that it does not need to be operated.  Do you agree with this indication? As soon as a descent of the cerebellar tonsils is detected, even if it is mild, our specialists study the complementary magnetic resonance scans, and/or others, in order to confirm whether this is due, or not, to a mechanical traction and identify the cause that brings it about. Example of a mild descent of the cerebellar tonsils.   If the existence of a mechanical traction of the spinal cord is confirmed, and the cause is an excessively tight filum terminale ( Filum Disease ), the SFT procedure is indicated as soon as possible in order to eliminate the traction that is traumatizing the spinal cord. For more Q & A vi sit our website .

We are grateful to Dr. Victoria for sharing his personal experience with two cases of Filum Disease in his family: his wife and his daughter.