Osteopathic medicine to treat lower-back pain
Last reviewed: June 2009
One patient's story
Larry Taylor, 55, an airline pilot from Olympia, Wash., began suffering from lower-back pain when he was 28 and flying cargo planes in the Philippines. The pain worsened in his 30s and 40s, eventually shooting down his left leg as well. Nights were particularly difficult, though sleeping on his back with a pillow under his knees helped. He moved around a lot with the Air Force, trying different doctors and chiropractors without much success. When Taylor became a commercial pilot, a colleague recommended that he seek treatment from an osteopathic doctor. After an evaluation, the osteopath performed various manipulations, which caused Larry to feel three pops. "I felt fantastic," he said. "He fixed me in one visit." Pain-free for 10 years, he now recommends osteopaths highly.
Larry Taylor, 55, an airline pilot from Olympia, Wash., began suffering from lower-back pain when he was 28 and flying cargo planes in the Philippines. The pain worsened in his 30s and 40s, eventually shooting down his left leg as well. Nights were particularly difficult, though sleeping on his back with a pillow under his knees helped. He moved around a lot with the Air Force, trying different doctors and chiropractors without much success. When Taylor became a commercial pilot, a colleague recommended that he seek treatment from an osteopathic doctor. After an evaluation, the osteopath performed various manipulations, which caused Larry to feel three pops. "I felt fantastic," he said. "He fixed me in one visit." Pain-free for 10 years, he now recommends osteopaths highly.
Osteopaths are educated and licensed to perform all aspects of standard medical care, plus are trained in osteopathic medicine, which emphasizes how the musculoskeletal system, particularly the spine, affects the entire body. They diagnose and treat certain conditions, including lower-back pain, by manipulating joints with techniques such as stretching, gentle pressure, and resistance.
According to the American Osteopathic Association, there are almost 57,000 osteopaths in active practice. This is a rapidly growing segment of health-care professionals in the U.S., with four new osteopathic medical schools established since 2003 and osteopathic medical school enrollment increasing 8.5 percent in 2008.
Osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) significantly reduces lower-back pain, according to a review of six trials comparing OMT to a control treatment in the August 2005 issue of BMC Musculoskeletal Disorders. There is a clear need for more empirical data to investigate how OMT works, and to determine if the therapy's benefits are long-lasting.
Because the overwhelming majority of studies of spinal manipulation involve chiropractors and physical therapists, Consumer Reports did not specifically inquire about OMT or osteopaths in our survey. However, we do recognize that this is another manual therapy that is available to those who suffer from lower-back pain. Our expert consultant on the back-pain survey, James N. Weinstein, D.O., M.S, director of the Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy and Clinical Practice, was trained as an osteopath.
