Rate of Hanger Reflex Occurrence: Unexpected Head Rotation on Fronto-temporal Head Compression

Abstract

When the head is encircled with a wire clothes hanger and the unilateral fronto-temporal region is compressed, the head rotates unexpectedly. As the mechanism is unclear, however, we have temporarily named this phenomenon as the “hanger reflex.” We previously reported a case wherein this phenomenon was applied to treat cervical dystonia. Because little is known about this phenomenon, we determined how often this phenomenon is observed in healthy subjects. Study participants were 120 healthy Japanese adults (60 men and 60 women) aged 19–65 years. A wire clothes hanger was applied to each subject’s head. The longer side of the hanger was attached over the volunteer’s fronto-temporal regions on both sides of the head in succession (i.e., two applications per volunteer). We evaluated whether the subjects felt the sensation of head rotation by using a questionnaire. The sensation of head rotation was observed in 95.8% of subjects. There were five non-responders (4.2%). In 85.4% of the trials, head rotation was observed in the direction that coincided with the side compressed by the hanger. There were no differences in responses between genders. The incident rate of the hanger reflex was remarkably high and most likely represents a prevalent phenomenon in humans. The mechanism underlying the reflex remains unknown. Further research should be performed to elucidate the underlying causes of the hanger reflex, which represents a potential treatment for cervical dystonia.

Pilot Study of a Device to Induce the Hanger Reflex in Patients with Cervical Dystonia

“… 15) We previously reported that more than 90% of healthy volunteers experienced a rotating sensation of the head after fronto-temporal compression, indicating that the HR is common in healthy subjects. 13) In the present study, a majority of subjects (85.4%) exhibited the HR in the direction of the compressed side; moreover, the HR restricted abnormal head rotation related to CD. In a previous study, the device was shown to generate sufficient pressure on the fronto-temporal region to restrict pathological head rotation even after its use for only 1 month.…”

“…In our previous research, the HR was absent in 7.9% of the 240 trials from 240 volunteers. 13) On this basis, non-responders to HR induction may have a more obtuse angle at the temporal line, making it difficult to induce skin shearing force. Our co-authors tentatively named this phenomenon (with unknown mechanism) the “hanger reflex” in 2008.…”

“… 13) We named this phenomenon as the hanger reflex (HR). 13 – 15) We induced the HR in patients with CD and found that it reduced abnormal head rotation, indicating its potential utility for the treatment of CD. 16) Accordingly, we developed a portable device for inducing the HR and applied it to a sample of patients with CD ( Figs.…”

The Hanger Reflex: An Inexpensive and Non-invasive Therapeutic Modality for Dystonia and Neurological Disorders

“…Movies 1-5 are available online.). [1][2][3] This phenomenon first came to light publicly in 1995, when a television program in Japan reported that a man aimlessly wore a wire hanger around his head while he was studying and found that his head rotated. After publication in a book, this phenomenon was termed as the "hanger reflex" by Kajimoto et al at the University of Electro-Communications in 2008.…”

“…(A) A wire hanger used to induce the hanger reflex and (B) the hanger is stretched out and worn around the head, touching the frontotemporal area and causing a sensation of the head rotating toward the compressed side. These figures have been reproduced from previously published papers 2,6).…”