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Monday, January 24, 2011

Naprapathy Shows Promise for Back and Neck Pain

A recent study suggests that naprapathy may provide short- and long-term benefits for patients with back and neck pain.

Naprapathy is an umbrella term for different types of bodywork and manual therapy. Types of naprapathy include the Alexander technique, applied kinesiology, Jones counterstrain, reflexology and others. All of these techniques involve using the practitioner's hands as tools to aid in the healing of the patient.

Researchers at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden included 409 patients with non-specific back and/or neck pain in this study. Each patient reported that the pain was present for at least two weeks. The patients were randomized into two groups. The first group received various types of naprapathy, including spinal manipulation and massage. The second group received standard physician advice on pain-coping mechanisms.

The researchers evaluated several outcome measures through questionnaires, including pain intensity and disability. At the 26-week follow-up period, the researchers reported that pain and disability significantly decreased by 21 percent and 11 percent, respectively in the naprapathy group compared to the standard care group. After 52 weeks, the naprapathy group reported a 17 percent risk difference for both pain and disability.

The authors concluded that naprapathy should be considered as a short- and long-term treatment option for patients with non-specific back and neck pain. Additional research is necessary to evaluate these potential benefits.

References
1.Natural Standard: The Authority on Integrative Medicine. www.naturalstandard.com
2.Skillgate E, Bohman T, Holm LW, et al. The long-term effects of naprapathic manual therapy on back and neck pain - results from a pragmatic randomized controlled trial. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2010 Feb 5;11:26. View Abstract

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1 comment:

Naprapath said...

Just to clarify: Naprapathy is NOT an "umbrella term" for different types of bodywork and manual therapy as stated here.

Naprapathy is a 100 year old branch of licensed manual medicine which focuses on very specific connective tissue techniques.

Naprapathy was founded in 1907 by Dr Oakley Smith, an early chiropractor. It is generally thought to essentially be a derivative of osteopathy and chiropractic, which focus on the spine and subluxations.

Naprapaths emphasize the underlying ligaments and "guide-wire" connective tissue system. Dr. Oakley Smith rejected the Palmer/Chiropractic concept of vertebral subluxation and developed a total departure as to the "doctrine of disease," - eventually developing his own concept, which was the Connective Tissue Doctrine with Chardosis and Chartology systems.

Naprapathy does NOT include the "Alexander technique, applied kinesiology, Jones counterstrain, reflexology and others" as implied in this blog. However, Licensed and Board Certified Naprapaths may choose to incorporate a variety of other types of techniques, such as PNF, and other styles within their scope of practice limits to enhance the effectiveness of the Naprapathic treatment for the benefit of their patient.

Modern Naprapaths are often referred to as Neuromyologists.