Possibilities of osteopathic correction of functional disorders in children

Abstract

Osteopathy is a branch of clinical medicine based on a holistic approach which uses manual methods on the stages of prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation and is aimed at restoring the body's natural ability to self-correction. The article presents an overview of randomized controlled trials of the results of osteopathic treatment of children of different age groups presenting functional alterations. All the trials were held in the Russian Federation over the recent years. On the grounds of the presented data it is possible to draw a conclusion about the proven clinical effectiveness of osteopathic treatment in hypoxic-ischemic lesions of the central nervous system, in particular, in hypertension-hydrocephalic syndrome, in the mild form of bulbar dysarthria as a consequence of a birth injury of the craniovertebral junction, dysplasia and subluxation of the hip joint, low degree myopia with the accommodation spasm, neurogenic dysfunctions of the urinary bladder complicated by the chronic bullous cystitis and vesicoureteral reflux. The sooner osteopathic treatment starts, the better is the result. Osteopathic treatment is safe. It allows to reduce the medicinal load and the risk of polypragmasy in children. It goes well with other methods of treatment, which is especially important for children of the first year of life. Osteopathy can enrich the clinical medicine toolkit and occupy a rightful place in the system of healthcare delivery to children.