Cracks in the Theory: Exposing Functional Neurology in Mild Traumatic Brain Injury Cases

As most insurance professionals and litigators know, the hot new trend for plaintiffs’ attorneys is to turn whiplash cases with significant insurance limits into mild Traumatic Brain Injury (mTBI) cases. Such cases raise the stakes for insurers and litigators because they are expensive to defend and create more exposure for insureds and their indemnitors.

Because the symptoms for mTBI are subjective, and common in the general population, plaintiffs’ attorneys have turned to functional neurologists to litigate their mTBI claims. To fight back against these expensive, possibly exaggerated claims, we must understand what functional neurology (FN) is and how to defend against it.

FN, sometimes called chiropractic neurology or clinical neuroscience, has its roots in chiropractic care. In Washington state, for example, there are only a handful of certified functional neurologists, and all are trained chiropractors. It is important to understand that, although they master the jargon of neurology and have a chiropractic diploma in functional neurology -- and perhaps several types of fellowships -- none are board-certified neurologists.