Manual Therapy
Manual therapy is the application of hand movements to control body tissues to reinstate movement, lessen pain, raise general health or bring relaxation. It also implies a course of procedures recommended by a medical therapist and is aimed at quick restoration of soft tissue or joints as well as reduction of pain syndrome (Barral & Croibier, 2007).
Examples of Techniques
Soft tissue mobilization is a therapy that uses motion to reduce muscle tension. Its purpose is to remove inelastic muscle tissues. Techniques of soft tissue mobilization include strain, counter strain, and myofascial release. The method treats the spine (Barral & Croibier, 2007).
Massage therapy adds such health benefits as improved blood circulation and relaxed muscles. It also treats chronic pain (Barral & Croibier, 2007).
Spinal manipulation techniques are among the most frequent methods used in neck-related pain treatment. Techniques of spinal manipulation include Gonstead adjustment, Thomson terminal point method, and diversified technique (Weiselfish-Giammatteo & Giammatteo, 2003).
Osteopathic manipulative treatment includes various methods used by osteopathic, for example cranial, sacral, and muscle energy, high velocity, low amplitude, and counterstrain. These techniques balance tissue, improve the motion range of joint and muscle flexibility which lessens pain. The procedure treats the neural and circulatory systems (Lederman & Lederman, 2005).
The functional technique is the therapy that addresses the linkage of the musculoskeletal system. The technique treats the musculoskeletal system (Barral & Croibier, 2007).
Visceral manipulation is the technique that treats endocrine and visceral systems (Lederman & Lederman, 2005).
Education and Scope of Practice
Manual therapy practitioners range from an osteopathic physicians, physical therapists, nurses, surgeons, chiropractors to doctors among others. The scope of practice of physical therapists is regulated by each state after the practice act was adopted (Lederman & Lederman, 2005). The practice act of each state requires practitioners to be of good moral character. Additionally, they need to have undergone a program that is recognized and accredited by a national agency. Besides, they need to pass the licensure examinations in manual therapy (Lederman & Lederman, 2005). The practitioners can also undergo programs taught by other bodies approved by the state board. The manual therapy profession requires special education, assessment, and training to encompass a set of skills and knowledge base that enables practitioners to provide patients with high-quality diagnoses based on justified and objective conclusions. (Barral & Croibier, 2007).
Case Study of a Successful Manual Therapy Treatment
The case involves a female aged 38 years who had chronic pain at her left ankle sprain. The female stepped clumsily off a street pavement eleven months prior to the manual therapy experience. After the occurrence of the injury, the woman experienced serious pain in the injured foot since it could not bear her weight (Weiselfish-Giammatteo & Giammatteo, 2003). The female sought medical attention at a nearby hospital, where X- rays turned out negative. A physical assessment indicated a soft tissue injury in her left leg ankle. After nine months, 85% of the female’s ankle was healed and she started attending a manual therapist (Weiselfish-Giammatteo & Giammatteo, 2003). Initially, the patient had feelings of pain on the ankle after applying manual pressure on it. A standard manual muscle therapy determined the patient’s ankle strength (Weiselfish-Giammatteo & Giammatteo, 2003). After the muscle therapy, the patient stated that her ankle felt stiff and tight. Thereafter, the patient was able to walk on her injured foot comfortably. Several stages of manual therapy lessened the ankle pain, removed the swelling and eventually healed the patient’s ankle (Lederman & Lederman, 2005).
References
Barral, J. P., & Croibier, A. (2007). Manual therapy for the peripheral nerves. Edinburgh: Churchill Livingstone/Elsevier.
Lederman, E., & Lederman, E. (2005). The science and practice of manual therapy. Edinburgh; New York: Elsevier/Churchill Livingstone.
Weiselfish-Giammatteo, S., & Giammatteo, T. (2003). Integrative manual therapy: Vol. 3. Berkeley, Calif: North Atlantic Books.