Unpublished Dissertation, British College of Osteopathic Medicine, 2002/01, 78, type of study: ,cr,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

Full text    (https://www.osteopathicresearch.org/s/orw/item/1325)

Keywords:

case report [736]
gastrointestinal tract [11]
IBS [36]
irritable bowel syndrome [42]
visceral osteopathy [99]

Abstract:

Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) is a condition, which is notoriously hard to define, due to its' lack of organic cause and its variability, in terms of symptoms. Many different theories exist as to what may be the main cause of the symptoms. It isthis quality that makes it hard to test in clinical trials, i.e. without any specific cause or distinct symptom the uncontrollable variables become endless. Many studies attempt to test the effect of one treatment on one symptom associated with IBS, but no real advances have been made, in terms of an effective treatment regime. The aim of this study was to see if a holistic osteopathic/naturopathic regime would be of benefit to IBS sufferers. The study was a single case research design on a small group of six subjects who received 6 weeks of visceral osteopathic treatment in combination with dietary advice hydrotherapy and breathing exercises. Treatments took the same format to maximise generality, but were tailored to the individuals' needs. Measurements were recorded in daily discomfort scales and weekly symptom scales using the Visual analogue method of scoring. This was maintained for the duration of the six weeks. Visual analysis of the graph-plotted data demonstrated that the subjects participating in the study benefited from the regime. Although due to the small number of subjects and therefore limited data, it was not possible to apply any statistical tests in order to verify the significance of the results. In terms of future research, it would be useful to conduct a study of this nature on a far larger scale over a longer duration of time, to clarify whether the results are replicable and statistically significant.