Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT)
Osteopathic manipulation is Osteopathic medicine. This means we treat the whole person, not just the symptoms. Thus, osteopathic medicine is a patient focused approach that uses a hands-on system of evaluation and treatment, designed to achieve and maintain health because it improves the structural balance of the body.
Developed in 1874 by Andrew Taylor Still, MD, DO, Osteopathic medicine brings a unique philosophy to traditional patient care. As a result, physicians trained in Osteopathic medicine understand that everything in the body is interconnected. Thus, they use their knowledge of anatomy, physiology and biochemistry to facilitate the body’s innate capacity to heal by addressing the interrelationship of the nerves, muscles, bones and organs. In many patients, structural problems in the spinal column can affect the nerves that radiate out to the various organs, thus causing imbalance and contributing to disease, for example.
Osteopathic Manipulation
Osteopathic Manipulation or Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT) is the therapeutic application of manual manipulation techniques by an osteopathic physician. It addresses the changes in body structure that will improve physiologic function. Manipulation means the therapeutic application of manual pressure or force. During a treatment, the physician moves a patient’s muscles and joints using techniques that include stretching, gentle pressure and resistance.
These techniques can help:
- Treat structural and tissue abnormalities
- Relieve joint restriction and misalignment
- Restore muscle and tissue balance
- Promote the overall movement of blood flow throughout the body
Who can benefit from Osteopathic Manipulation?
OMT can help people of all ages and backgrounds. The treatment can be used to ease pain, promote healing and increase overall mobility. Therefore it often can provide an alternative to pain medications or surgery. Although often used to treat neck and back pain, the treatment can also help patients with a number of other health problems such as:
- Some types of headaches, that generate from misalignments in cervical spine
- Asthma
- Sinus disorders
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- Menstrual pain
- Sports injuries
- Repetitive stress injuries
Each individual expresses health and disease differently and the absence of disease does not imply the presence of health. Through her Osteopathic training, Dr Sisu recognizes that changes in body structure can alter function which may contribute to dis-ease. Her osteopathic treatments help restore the balance in the musculoskeletal and the autonomic nervous system which will positively impact the health of the whole body. In conclusion, the osteopathic approach is a true system of preventive medicine, treating the whole person, not just the disease.