Sydney Osteopathic Treatment
Osteopaths can diagnose the cause of pain and help to ease it by reducing tissue inflammation. The osteopaths treatment methods range from massage of muscles and connective tissues to manipulation and stretching of joints.
This helps to reduce muscle spasm, to increase mobility and to create a healthier state in which damaged tissues can heal.
Much long-term, recurrent pain is caused by degenerative changes to the body’s framework. Nobody can reverse this process of ageing, but your osteopathic treatment may still ease pain. Pain control is an important part of our treatment in our Sydney Osteopathic Clinic and our osteopaths give guidance on simple self-help methods to use at home.
The skilled techniques of osteopathy can often allow you a speedy return to normal activity.
If you have had a pain for a long time, and other forms of treatment have not helped, osteopathic treatment can be beneficial, although it may require time and patience.
Commonly used treatment techniques are as follows:
* HVLA
o Direct
o Indirect
High velocity low amplitude treatment uses forces quickly applied to a discrete area. This is familiar to many people as thrusting or “popping”technique. This is most commonly performed as a direct technique.
* Muscle Energy
Muscle energy uses the force of patients voluntarily directed muscle contractions to treat. It is usually direct, but can be an indirect approach.
* Counterstrain
Counterstrain uses tender points (discrete tender areas that are caused by structural problems) to locate a problem and the body is positioned in such a fashion to relieve then tenderness at this point and held until the body fixes it. It is a form of indirect technique.
* Fascial and Myofascial Release
Fascial release is a very old osteopathic technique, which can use direct or indirect forces to treat fascial restrictions.
* Balanced Tension
This technique balances the tension of or across a givem level to set up a condition where the body is less affected by the pathology and can treat itself.
o Can be applied to all connective tissues. most commonly it a applied to ligaments, membranes, and articulations.
o Fluid
This balances the tension on the level of the fluid, which can develop physiologic restrictions. Remember the fluid contains electrolytes and proteins, which alter the characteristics of a fluid.
o Potency
This balances the tension on the level of the potency, a level deeper than the cerebrospinal fluid.
* Lateral Fluctuation
This sets up a wave in the fluid that fluctuates back and forth from one side of the body to another until it reduces in magnitude and sets up a change in the body.
* CV4/EV4
A CV4 is a technique that brings the fluid towards the midline of the body to institute a change. An EV4 brings about a change by allowing the fluid to go away from the midline and towards the periphery. They are useful under different circumstances.
* Observation
It would not seem that observing something would have any effect on it, but when a trained practitioner observes the body in the correct manner and at the proper level, he/she can augment the self-healing forces allowing the body to fix itself.
* Percussion
The use of percussion was pioneered by Robert Fulford, DO and developed over many years of practice. This involves using a Foredom percussor over precise areas of the body at just the right speed (and correct length of time) to help the body treat itself.
* Biodynamics
Biodynamics is an approach put together by James, Jealous DO using the later writings of the founder of Cranial Osteopathy, W. G. Sutherland, DO.
* Embryologic Matrix
Embryologic matrix technique is another new approach based on the ideas of W.G. Sutherland, DO and principles of embryology. It utilizes the matrix of embryologic development of the body (which the body uses to treat itself) to augment self-corrective forces.