Mel:

I am surprised you missed these studies.

TITLE:  Simultaneous palpation of the craniosacral rate at the head and
feet: intrarater and interrater reliability and rate comparisons.
AUTHORS:  Rogers JS; Witt PL; Gross MT; Hacke JD; Genova PA
AUTHOR AFFILIATION:  US Air Force Academy Cadet Physical Therapy Clinic, US
Air Force Academy, CO 80840, USA. [log in to unmask]
SOURCE:  Phys Ther 1998 Nov;78(11):1175-85
CITATION IDS:  PMID: 9806622 UI: 99021459
ABSTRACT:  BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: The main purpose of this study was to
determine the interrater and intrarater reliability of measurements obtained
during palpation of the craniosacral rate at the head and feet. Palpated
craniosacral rates of head and feet measured simultaneously were also
compared. Subjects. Twenty-eight adult subjects and 2 craniosacral examiners
participated in the study. METHODS: A within-subjects repeated-measures
design was used. A standard cubicle privacy curtain, hung over the subject's
waist, was used to prevent the examiners from seeing each other. RESULTS:
Interrater intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) were .08 at the head
and .19 at the feet. Intrarater ICCs ranged from .18 to .30. Craniosacral
rates simultaneously palpated at the head and feet were different.
CONCLUSION AND DISCUSSION: The results did not support the theories that
underlie craniosacral therapy or claims that craniosacral motion can be
palpated reliably.

TITLE:  Craniosacral rhythm: reliability and relationships with cardiac and
respiratory rates.
AUTHORS:  Hanten WP; Dawson DD; Iwata M; Seiden M; Whitten FG; Zink T
AUTHOR AFFILIATION:  Texas Woman's University, Houston 77030, USA.
SOURCE:  J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 1998 Mar;27(3):213-8
CITATION IDS:  PMID: 9513867 UI: 98175054
ABSTRACT:  Craniosacral rhythm (CSR) has long been the subject of debate,
both over its existence and its use as a therapeutic tool in evaluation and
treatment. Origins of this rhythm are unknown, and palpatory findings lack
scientific support. The purpose of this study was to determine the intra-
and inter-examiner reliabilities of the palpation of the rate of the CSR and
the relationship between the rate of the CSR and the heart or respiratory
rates of subjects and examiners. The rates of the CSR of 40 healthy adults
were palpated twice by each of two examiners. The heart and respiratory
rates of the examiners and the subjects were recorded while the rates of the
subjects' CSR were palpated by the examiners. Intraclass correlation
coefficients were calculated to determine the intra- and inter-examiner
reliabilities of the palpation. Two multiple regression analyses, one for
each examiner, were conducted to analyze the relationships between the rate
of the CSR and the heart and respiratory rates of the subjects and the
examiners. The intraexaminer reliability coefficients were 0.78 for examiner
A and 0.83 for examiner B, and the interexaminer reliability coefficient was
0.22. The result of the multiple regression analysis for examiner A was R =
0.46 and adjusted R2 = 0.12 (p = 0.078) and for examiner B was R = 0.63 and
adjusted R2 = 0.32 (p = 0.001). The highest bivariate correlation was found
between the CSR and the subject's heart rate (r = 0.30) for examiner A and
between the CSR and the examiner's heart rate (r = 0.42) for examiner B. The
results indicated that a single examiner may be able to palpate the rate of
the CSR consistently, if that is what we truly measured. It is possible that
the perception of CSR is illusory. The rate of the CSR palpated by two
examiners is not consistent. The results of the regression analysis of one
examiner offered no validation to those of the other. It appears that a
subject's CSR is not related to the heart or respiratory rates of the
subject or the examiner.

TITLE:  The controversy of cranial bone motion.
AUTHORS:  Rogers JS; Witt PL
AUTHOR AFFILIATION:  United States Air Force, Colorado Springs, CO
80840-9999, USA.
SOURCE:  J Orthop Sports Phys Ther 1997 Aug;26(2):95-103
CITATION IDS:  PMID: 9243408 UI: 97387375
ABSTRACT:  Cranial bone motion continues to stimulate controversy. This
controversy affects the general acceptance of some intervention methods used
by physical therapists, namely, cranial osteopathic and craniosacral therapy
techniques. Core to these intervention techniques is the belief that cranial
bone mobility provides a compliant system where somatic dysfunction can
occur and therapeutic techniques can be applied. Diversity of opinion over
the truth of this concept characterizes differing viewpoints on the anatomy
and physiology of the cranial complex. Literature on cranial bone motion was
reviewed for the purpose of better understanding this topic. Published
research overall was scant and inconclusive. Animal and human studies
demonstrate a potential for small magnitude motion. Physical therapists
should carefully scrutinize the literature presented as evidence for cranial
bone motion. Further research is needed to resolve this controversy.
Outcomes research, however, is needed to validate cranial bone mobilization
as an effective treatment.