Osteopathy is a method of treatment that does not merely examine the musculoskeletal system, where symptoms often manifest, but involves the entire body in the examination. If the balance between moving parts in the body—such as joints, muscles, organs, blood vessels, and nerves—is disturbed, it can lead to problems elsewhere in the body sooner or later. Low back pain can be such a problem area with many underlying causes.
A practical example:
A 71-year-old man visits my practice; for several months, he has been complaining of low back pain, sometimes radiating to his lower legs, which started without any apparent cause and which he has never had before, accompanied by significant stiffness in his back. X-rays taken recently showed no abnormalities; the GP’s diagnosis was a blockage of the S.I. joints (S.I. = Sacroiliac, or the sacrum and pelvis).
During the examination, I also confirmed this diagnosis—blockage of the sacroiliac joints—but that is actually where the osteopath’s investigation truly begins: which structure is responsible for the development of this complaint?
In this case, it turned out to be limited mobility in the prostate region, a small organ located low in the pelvis and connected to the sacrum, one of the bones forming the S.I. joint.
Treatment of this region and the associated influences to and from blood vessels and nerves led to the normalization of movement in internal structures and the sacrum with its associated nerves, causing the symptoms to disappear. Incidentally, the prostate function in this patient was fine; a routine check-up a few years ago had identified a slight enlargement, which is not abnormal with aging, but there were no complaints then or now, and a measured PSA value—prostate value—in the blood was normal.
In short: a fine example of a chain of cause and effect involving two completely different tissues, such as those we encounter daily in various places in the body within osteopathic practice.
Article on osteopathy case studies and low back pain, published in the Ahrenberger, October 2012, face to face
