Chiropractor & Functional Medicine Headquarters

What is IM?

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Interactive Metronome® (IM) is an evidence-based assessment and training tool that helps strengthen the brain’s ability to synchronize thought and movement to a steady metronome beat. IM responds to a client’s physical performance by providing real-time auditory and visual millisecond feedback indicating whether they are hitting before, after or in sync with the beat. The overall goal of IM training is to improve timing in the brain, or Neurotiming, through rhythm and repetition.

Studies show that children with learning or developmental disorders, as well as adult acquired neurological illnesses or injuries, have poor Neurotiming.

When Neurotiming improves, gains are seen in:

• Attention & Executive Functioning

• Motor Coordination & Balance

• Language Processing

• Reading & Math Fluency

• Control of Impulsivity & Aggression

 

Why is timing important?

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Timing is everything, a phrase, I’m sure that you have all heard a million times. But what you likely don’t think about when you hear this phrase is how fundamental timing is to everything that we do as humans, both spectacular things and simple things.

Precise timing is responsible for a stellar athletic performance, or a group of musicians making a perfect melody or it can even be the key to a funny punch line. Timing is responsible for a person being able to walk without falling or speaking without stuttering. Timing is what allows us to focus, process language, keep our balance and have smooth gait, play a sport, and even read. Timing is responsible for the synchronous communication of our brains’ network system that connects cognitive processes and physical movement. Therefore the ability to have accurate Neurotiming is one of the most critical factors in human performance.

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Research Studies

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2015

Journal of Neurology and Neuroscience

The Validation of the Interactive Metronome: A Pilot Study Prior to Implementation for Post Deployment Service Members

The purpose of this study was to validate the protocols created for the Interactive Metronome TM (IM) used in conjunction with the TRX® System for returning post deployment service members diagnosed with mild traumatic brain and/or Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. This was done using a pilot population similar in age and physical status as active duty military, but within a college setting. The pre-established protocols were pilot tested on two male and two female participants. Changes were observed and recorded using a variety of instruments. The Canadian Occupational Performance Measure, Test of Everyday Attention, IM Long Form assessment, and the Nine-Hole Peg Test were administered during pre- and post-test evaluations. The results collected demonstrated positive results. These results are highly notable especially given the premorbid normal status of the participants who then made measurable positive changes. 

Participants reported that they found the IM reassuring; especially at the end of the academic day. Anecdotally, the participants reported that it was a “happy place to go to” during their final exams and relieved some of the sense of stress. 

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Leonard Trujillo & Jane Painter-Patton

 

 

2015

 Journal of Research in Childhood Education

Effects of Improvements in Interval Timing on the Mathematics Achievement of Elementary School Students

A total of 86 students ranging in age from 7-10 years of age from 1st through 5th grade classrooms at an inner-city charter school participated in a randomized, controlled study to examine the effect of IM training on mathematics achievement. Students in the experimental group participated in 18 daily sessions of IM training (50 minutes each) over a period of 4 weeks. Students in the control group participated in recess. All study participants participated in pre & post testing with The Woodcock-Johnson III Tests of Achievement to evaluate mathematics achievement.

As shown in several other IM studies, there was again an observed cross domain effect from sensorimotor synchronization training with IM (i.e., previous studies have shown IM training for timing/rhythmicity generalizes to significant gains in cognitive, motor and academic skills). Students that received 18 daily sessions of IM training demonstrated significantly higher scores for mathematics achievement when compared to students who participated in recess.

The authors provide an in-depth analysis for these findings, including “an integration of psychometric theory and contemporary information processing theory to provide a context from which to develop preliminary hypotheses to explain how a nonacademic intervention designed to improve timing/rhythmicity can demonstrate a statistically significant effect on students’ mathematics achievement scores.”

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Gordon E. Taub,
Kevin S. McGrew &
Timothy Z. Keith

 

2014

Frontiers in Neurology

Timing training in three children with diplegic cerebral palsy: short- and long-term effects on upper-limb movement organization and functioning

Three children with diplegic cerebral palsy (DCP) participated in 4 weeks (12 sessions) of individualized Interactive Metronome (IM) training. Investigators explored the effect of IM training on motor timing, spatio-temporal movement organization, and functional changes in upper limb function. Pre & post measures included IM assessment for timing & rhythm, optoelectronic registrations of goal-directed upper limb movements, and a questionnaire to gather subjective experiences pertaining to change in upper limb function and usability. Two of the three children reported substantial and long-lasting changes in hand/arm functionality, with increased movement control and reduced muscle tone. Further, parallel kinematic analysis of these children revealed smoother and faster movement trajectories. These improvements were still evident upon reassessment 6 months later. Based upon these findings, further study of the impact of timing training on a larger cohort of children with DCP is warranted.

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Anna-Maria Johansson, Erik Domellöf, & Louise Rönnqvist

 

 

2014

Sports Biomechanics

Synchronized metronome training induces changes in kinematic properties of the golf swing

This study is a follow-up to that published by the same team in 2009. The purpose of this research was to explore more deeply the effect of Interactive Metronome® on golf-swing performance. The authors concluded that Interactive Metronome® influences temporal synchronicity & domain-general abilities that underlie brain-based motor control strategies for the coordinated movement pattern of golf-swing performance.

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Marius Sommer,
Charlotte Hager &
Louise Rönnqvist

 

2013

Neuropsychology

Effects of Interactive Metronome® Therapy on Cognitive Functioning After Blast-Related Brain Injury: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial

Preliminary findings of a randomized, controlled study concerning the efficacy of IM for remediation of cognitive deficits in active duty soldiers following blast-related mild-to-moderate TBI. Compared outcomes of standard rehabilitation care alone (OT, PT, SLP) to the same standard rehabilitation care + 15 IM treatment sessions. The group that received IM in addition to standard care outperformed the group who received standard rehabilitation care alone on several neuropsychological measures with medium to large effect sizes. Future publications based upon this study will reveal the results of 6 month follow-up testing (still in process) and analysis of electrocortical (EEG) data.

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Lonnie A. Nelson,
Margaret MacDonald,
Christina Stall &
Renee Pazdan

 

2013

Journal of Chiropractic Medicine

Chiropractic management using a brain-based model of care for a 15-year-old adolescent boy with migraine headaches and behavioral and learning difficulties: a case report

This case study highlights the treatment of a 15-year-old boy who had over 10 years of migraine headaches and learning difficulties, including ADHD, Tourrette syndrome and obsessive compulsive disorder. Before the program, the subject scored below his grade average in all achievement test. After training, his achievement test scores showed improvement of 90% in vocabulary, 110% in math and an incredible 134% in concepts and application. Additionally, after the course of the program, he reported his headaches had diminished, his vision was improved, his asthma had eased and he didn't feel sick all of the time. Further study is required to fully prove the efficacy of treatment plan, as it was only one patient; however, results are very promising for the application of brain-based training methods in chiropractic management.

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Kurt W. Kuhn &
Jerrilyn Cambron