Osteopathy - From Rope Swings to Legislation
By Steven Orton D.O.

Osteopathy was founded by Andrew Taylor-Still (born Virginia, 1828), the son of a clergyman, who also practiced medicine back in the 19th century.

As a child, A T Still suffered from a large number of headaches. He decided one day to lie down with his head on the base of his swing therefore putting pressure on the base of his skull. He found this alleviated his headaches, and continued to do the same whenever he had a headache.

This was just the first sign of a life fascinated by the building blocks of the body muscles, ligaments and bones. A T Still studied anatomy at every opportunity, he continued to learn by experience with his father, and with formal medical training, eventually qualifying as a doctor.

It was personal tragedy, which made A T Still strive further, when an epidemic (what we now know as meningitis) hit the region. Even though he was a doctor, he lost 3 of his own children.

Frustrated by the lack of medical knowledge at that time A T still started to observe patterns in the structure of the body in his patients, using his knowledge of anatomy and medicine. He concluded that disruption in the structure of the body could cause problems with the function or disease. It is this, which forms the basis of osteopathy today.

A T Still worked out a series of mechanical movements which would enable the patientís structure to be improved, so improving function. With this osteopathy was born (osteo - bone / Pathos - disease in Greek).

Since itís beginning, osteopathy has continued to grow and be refined but itís principles are based on the grounding A T still developed. What follows is just a few of the main principles.

The body is a unit - Although the body is made up of a series of tissues and organs, they can not be considered in isolation, so an osteopath will look at he whole rather than focus on the one specific area the patient reports bothering them. It is quite common to have a low back pain, which is related to headaches.

Structure governs function - If there is a problem in the structure of the patient this will create a problem in function. For example if a patient reports a problem with breathing, due to rib tension - the patient could therefore be prone to lung infection due to lack of circulation.

The body has the ability to defend and repair itself - A simple example if you have an insect bite although poison has been introduced in a few days it is nearly healed.

The rule of the artery is supreme - in order to progress towards a healthy state the body needs a healthy blood supply, to get the necessary antibodies to fight infection. In hospital, elderly patients are encouraged to move in order to maintain circulation, preventing bed sores.

Since A T Still started the first osteopathic college from Kirksville, USA, Osteopathy has continued to grow. Osteopathic medicine is now practiced worldwide using accepted medical and scientific fact as a basis to treat a range of problems from low back pain to Asthma.

The 1993 report from the British Medical Association "Complementary Medicine - New Approaches to Good Practice" recognised Osteopathy as a discrete clinical discipline'. Osteopathy is the first complementary health care profession to be accorded statutory regulation (Osteopaths Act 1993). Today there are around 3,000 osteopaths in the UK performing over six million patient consultations a year (source General Osteopathic Council).