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Manual therapy and ear pain: a report of four cases
Donald R Murphy1, Charles W Gay
1Clinical Director, Rhode Island Spine Center, Clinical Assistant Professor, Department of Community Health, Alpert Medical School of Brown University. Adjunct Associate Professor, Department of Research, New York Chiropractic College.
Purpose:
To report and discuss four cases of ear pain which were treated successfully with manual therapy.
Methods:
Report of four cases.
Results:
Four patients with ear pain were referred for chiropractic consult. They were all treated with a combination of manual therapy and exercise with resolution of their ear symptoms.
Conclusions:
The mechanism of idiopathic ear pain that may be amenable to manual therapy is not fully known. Further research is needed to investigate the etiology of this disorder and to determine whether manual therapy and exercise are viable options in some patients with idiopathic ear pain. In the meantime, it may be advantageous for otolaryngologists to seek input from physicians skilled in assessment and treatment of the musculoskeletal system in cases ear pain for which an otolarygologic etiology cannot be found.