Osteopathy was founded in 1874 by Dr. Andrew Taylor Still a physician from Missouri, United States. Manual osteopathy uses non-invasive and drug-free interventions as a therapeutic approach which is effective and efficient in maintaining the overall health and optimum functioning of a body. It is a system of assessing, diagnosing, treating and preventing a broad range of health problems and based on the principle that the prime role of the manual practitioner is to facilitate the body’s inherent ability to heal itself. Often we think about good health as an absence of any illness or disease. But it is an only physical component of health whereas good health is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being. Manual osteopathy covers all the aspects of health and delivers the optimum health.The philosophy of osteopathy justifies that the function and structure of the body work together to achieve integrated function. The mechanism behind the theory is that if the problem occurs in the musculoskeletal system, it can affect the other organ of the body which is “somato-visceral reflex” or any changes in the body organs can affect the musculoskeletal tissue and intervertebral joint motion which is “viscera-somatic reflex.” Therefore, any abnormality in the neuromusculoskeletal system and organs is considered as an osteopathic lesion or somatic dysfunction. Manual osteopath looks for these osteopathic lesions which are useful in physical diagnosis before initiating the treatment.
Manual osteopathy uses subtle hands-on techniques such as palpation and static joint play to examine any restrictions, inflammation, tenderness, swelling, and range of motion in the body. The treatment offered by manual osteopath is soft tissue therapy; osteoarticular joint mobilization techniques; cranial; and visceral therapy which is considered four pillars of the manual osteopathy. Manual therapy focus on bones, muscles, organs, and joints to help the patients in reducing pain, muscle tension, and improve the flexibility, range of motion, and overall balancing of the body. It also improves the blood flow to the affected area and stimulates hormones such as endorphin, serotonin, and dopamine which relieves the stress and helps the patients to heal faster. Some of the conditions that manual osteopath deals with are:
