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Assessment of the Efficacy of An Osteopathic Treatment in Infants with Biomechanical Impairments to Suckling
Published on: February 5, 2019
Osteopathic evaluation and manipulative treatment in reducing the morbidity of otitis media: a pilot study
Brian F Degenhardt1, Michael L Kuchera
1A.T. Still University of Health Sciences, 800 W Jefferson St, Kirksville, MO 63501-1443, USA. bdegenhardt@atsu.edu
Insights
Osteopathic manipulative treatment may reduce symptom recurrence in children with recurrent acute otitis media. Further research is needed to confirm these promising findings for pediatric otitis media management.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Otolaryngology
- Complementary and Alternative Medicine
- Osteopathic Medicine
Background:
- Recurrent acute otitis media (AOM) is a common pediatric condition.
- Traditional medical management has limitations and potential side effects.
- Osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) is a manual therapy approach.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the efficacy of OMT as an adjunct to routine care for pediatric recurrent AOM.
- To assess the impact of OMT on AOM recurrence rates and symptom severity.
Main Methods:
- Pilot cohort study with 8 pediatric patients (7-35 months) with recurrent AOM.
- 1-year follow-up including parent and physician contact.
- Weekly OMT sessions for 3 weeks, alongside standard medical care.
Main Results:
- 62.5% of subjects experienced no AOM recurrence post-intervention.
- Of the remaining subjects, one had a bulging tympanic membrane, and another had four episodes.
- One subject underwent surgery after 6 weeks due to recurrence; however, a potential decrease in morbidity was observed in two subjects.
Conclusions:
- OMT may alter the disease progression of recurrent AOM in children.
- Findings suggest OMT warrants further investigation as a potential treatment modality.
- Additional research is recommended to validate these preliminary results.
Objective:
To study the effects of osteopathic manipulative treatment in routine pediatric care for children with recurrent acute otitis media.
Study Design:
Pilot cohort study with 1-year posttreatment follow-up. At follow-up, subjects' parents or legal guardians and their referring and/or family physicians were contacted to determine recurrence of otitis media since intervention.
Subjects:
A referred and volunteer sample of pediatric patients ranging in age from 7 months to 35 months with a history of recurrent otitis media (N=8).
Intervention:
For 3 weeks, all subjects received weekly osteopathic structural examinations and osteopathic manipulative treatment. This intervention was performed concurrently with traditional medical management.
Results:
Five (62.5%) subjects had no recurrence of symptoms. Of the three remaining subjects in this cohort, one had a bulging tympanic membrane, another had four episodes of otitis media, and the last underwent surgery after recurrence at 6 weeks posttreatment. Closer analysis of the posttreatment course of the last two subjects indicates that there may have been a clinically significant decrease in morbidity for a period of time after intervention.
Conclusion:
The present study indicates that osteopathic manipulative treatment may change the progression of recurrent otitis media, a finding that supports the need for additional research in this area.
