Osteopathy, along with Acupuncture, Chiropractic, Ayurveda, Homeopathy and Naturopathy, is considered as a complementary and alternative method of practicing medicine. Osteopathy was founded by Andrew Taylor Still in 1874, during the time of the American Civil War. Still reasoned that pathological conditions can be determined by looking at the bones, and thus his brand of medicine was called Osteopathy.
Basically,
Osteopathy would be focusing on the role of the muscoskeletal system to the general well-being of the body and to accompanying diseases as well. This medical practice follows eight basic principles which more or less would say what Osteopathy is all about. One of the basic tenets of osteopathic medicine is that the body is a unit. Everything is interrelated and that the condition of the bones or any part could very well be indicative of the state of the health and unhealthiness of the body. The second principle is that function and structure are very much related and have in fact a reciprocal relationship. It is not surprising that the bones in the legs would be generally much denser than anywhere else as it needs to support the weight of the upper body. So basically, having an out of form muscle or bone structure would be an indication that something is amiss in the body. Another guiding principle of osteopaths in approaching medicine is that the body has its own self-regulating mechanisms, and so treatment, detection of diseases and symptoms would more or less fall into this principle. Actually, general medicine also adheres to this principle and so it is not surprising that a specific branch of medicine like osteopathy would employ this principle to its approach. A diabetic man would have increased sugar levels in his blood and smokers would have darker pleural walls, and knowing how the body reacts to different stimuli would surely be a big help in finding out what’s really wrong with the patient.
The next underlying principle osteopaths go by is that the body has the capacity to repair and defend itself. It is a fact that when one gets cut, blood will come out but in a few days will close up and heal assuming one has a normal and healthy constitution. So if this is the case, practitioners of osteopathy don’t believe much in remedial medicine as the body can take care of itself and would be more inclined to preventive medicine. Another influence on osteopathic medical practice is the principle that diseases occur when environmental changes overpowers the body’s capacity to adapt to these changes. Stress related diseases would be very much in the area of osteopaths because they would know how to treat those diseases brought about by sudden changes in the environment. Practicing osteopaths is also looking at the movement of fluids inside the body.
They believe that the orderly flowing of fluids such as blood and water inside the body contributes to the soundness of the body. In line with this thought,
practitioners of osteopathy further believe that the nerves have an essential role in controlling the fluids inside the body. Poor circulation of blood and poor absorption of water and nutrients in it by the body would generally lead to all sorts of diseases and so ensuring proper circulation and good water absorption would also be a key to a long and healthy life.
The last principle osteopathic doctors adhere by in approaching medicine is that there are somatic components to a disease and that these somatic components also contribute as to why diseases won’t heal and lingers. Knowing these somatic components would indeed by helpful in making the disease to dissipate and avoid lasting damages to the body.
In the US, osteopathy as a field of medicine is moving closer and closer to mainstream medicine. Osteopathy as a field of study together with its philosophy and methodology is being accepted by more and more medical doctors. In fact, lots of practicing doctors take up osteopathy as a field for advanced studies. Right now, there are two schools of thought in osteopathy, one is the traditionalist and usually call their branch “osteopathic medicine” while the one which is getting more acceptance is simply called osteopathy.
Currently, osteopathic treatment is becoming the popular choice of Americans to get consulted to with regards to lower back pains, asthma and middle ear infections.
