by Julien Prosnier BSc (Hons) Ost

Visceral Osteopathy: Internal organs,digestive tract, respiratory system, etc

Osteopathy aims at improving the function of the body through techniques that restore the normal movement of any tissue in the human body.

What is Visceral Osteopathy?

Visceral osteopathy is this part of osteopathy interested in improving the function of the body and thus its health using techniques directed to the viscera that is the internal organs of the body such as kidneys, liver, bladder or lungs. Indeed in your body the internal organs are constantly moving between each other or in relation to musculoskeletal structures ( muscles , fascia , joints …etc ) to perform their tasks and to respond and accommodate to the movement of the body such as sitting down, jumping, bending forward…etc.

For several reasons normal movement in an organ can be restricted or even completely lost and that will lead in time to symptoms in the organ itself as well as in the musculoskeletal system such as the spine, the shoulder, the knee …etc.

Any lack of movement somewhere in the body will cause an impairment in function locally (at the site where the natural movement has been lost) but also at distant body’s parts.
The end result will be impairment in the individual’s health showing up via various symptoms.
 

What happens during a Visceral Osteopathy treatment?

Visceral techniques are gentle! During the visceral treatment the osteopath may make a deep contact with the body, but it will not be invasive and is rarely painful, although at times it may feel as if the osteopath’s hands are reaching parts others may not have reach before! These gentle manipulations can improve the functioning of the individual organs, the systems the organs function within and the structural integrity of the entire body. As the source of the problem is released, the symptoms will start to decrease as the body returns to greater health. This could take several days to occur after the treatment.

The visceral system relies on the interconnected synchronicity between the motions of all the organs and structures of the body. At optimal health, this harmonious relationship remains stable despite the body's endless varieties of motion.

Visceral Osteopathy relieves imbalances and restrictions in the interconnections between the motions of all the organs and structures of the body. Jean-Pierre Barral RPT, DO built on the pioneering work of Andrew Taylor Still DO and William Garner Sutherland DO, to create this method of detailed assessment and highly specific manipulation.

Visceral Osteopathy can help with:

• Digestive problems
• Back and neck pain
• Shoulder and hip pain
• Postural distortions
• Whiplash, seatbelt injuries
• Repetitive strain injuries
• Tension

Children/babies:

• digestive problems

And much more - ask if you have heard that osteopathy can help with other conditions
 

MORE STUFF

Visceral Manipulation

Visceral manipulation addresses the interrelationship of function and structure among the internal organs and the musculoskeletal system. When the body experiences stress or strain, deep structures tighten up protectively. Traumatic impact can also affect the organs and surrounding tissue as the force moves through the body.

Pain and mobility problems in one region can persist or worsen because the root cause is actually located elsewhere. For instance, neck problems are often related to pleural tension since the ligaments that suspend and support the lungs attach to the cervical vertebra and upper ribs. The ligaments around the liver can have chronic tension affecting the lungs and so on.
 

The Therapeutic Value of Visceral Manipulation

Life and motion are intertwined. Although we can have motion without life, we cannot have life without motion. Of particular importance are those motions, not ordinarily viable, that take place within the human body. They are linked to many levels of activity, from cellular pulsations to rhythmic contractions of the heart, diaphragm, even the craniosacral system.

The visceral system relies on the interconnected synchronicity between the motions of all the organs and structures of the body. At optimal health, this harmonious relationship remains stable despite the body's endless varieties of motion.

But when one organ cannot move in harmony with its viscera due to abnormal tone, adhesions or displacement, it works against the body's other organs and muscular membranous, fascial and osseous structures. This disharmony creates fix fixed, abnormal points of tension that the body is force to move around. And that chronic irritation, in turn, paves the way for disease and dysfunction.

Imagine an adhesion around the lungs. It would create a modified axis that demands abnormal accommodations from nearby body structures.

For example, the adhesion could alter rib motion, which could then create imbalanced for forces on the vertebral column and with time, possibly develop a dysfunctional relationship with other structures. This scenario highlights just one of hundreds of possible ramifications of a small dysfunction, magnified by thousands of repetitions each day.

Thanks to the dedicated work of Jean-Pierre Barral, an osteopathic physician and registered physiotherapist, healthcare practitioners today can use the rhythmic motions of the visceral system as important therapeutic tools. Barral's research and clinical work with the viscera led to his development of a form of manual therapy that focuses on the internal organs, their environment, and their potential influence on many structural and physiological dysfunctions. The term he coined for this therapy was Visceral Manipulation.

Visceral Manipulation relies on the palpation of normal and abnormal forces within the body. By using specific techniques, therapists can evaluate how abnormal forces interplay, overlap and affect the normal body forces at work. The goal is to help the body's normal forces remove abnormal effects, whatever their sources. Those effects can be global, encompassing many areas of bodily function.
 

How Does Visceral Manipulation Help You?

Visceral Manipulation is used to locate and solve problems throughout the body. It encourages your own natural mechanisms to improve the functioning of your organs, dissipate the negative effects of stress, and enhance general health and resistance to disease.

Visceral Manipulation is based on the specific placement of soft manual forces to encourage the normal mobility, tone and motion of the viscera and their connective tissues. These gentle manipulations can potentially improve the functioning of individual organs, the systems the organs function within, and the structural integrity of the entire body.

Due to the delicate and often highly reactive nature of the visceral tissues, gentle force precisely directed reaps the greatest results. As with other methods of manipulation that affect the body deeply, Visceral Manipulate on works only to assist the forces already at work. Because of that, trained therapists can be sure of benefiting the body rather than adding further injury or disorganization.

Harmony and health exist when motion is free and excursion is full, when motionis not laboured, overexcited, depressed or conflicting with neighbouring structures and their mobility. Therapists using Visceral Manipulation assess the dynamic functional actions as well as the somatic structures that perform individual activities. They also evaluate the quality of the somatic structures and their functions in relation to an overall harmonious pattern, with motion serving as the gage for determining quality.
  

What is the history of Visceral Osteopathy  

Methods such as Visceral Manipulation have been part of the medicinal cultures in Europe and Asia since pre-recorded times. Indeed, manual manipulations of the internal organs have long been a component of some therapeutic systems in Oriental medicine. So it's no surprise that practitioners in many parts of the world have incorporated manipulations designed to work with the internal organs and their functions.

Working with Dr. Arnaud, Barral followed patterns of stress in the tissues of cadavers and studied biomechanisms in living subjects. This introduced him to the visceral system and the notion that tissues have memory, which was fundamental to his development of Visceral Manipulation.

In 1974, Barral earned his diploma in osteopathic medicine from the European School of Osteopathy in Maidstone, England (the same college as Julien Prosnier). Working primarily with articular and structural manipulation, he began forming the basis for Visceral Manipulation during an unusual session with a patient he's been treating with spinal manipulations.

During the preliminary examination, Barral was surprised to find appreciable movement. The patient confirmed that he felt relief from his back pain after going to an "old man who pushed something in his abdomen."

This incident piqued Barral's interest in the relationship between the viscera and the spine. That's when he began exploring stomach manipulations with several patients, with successful results gradually leading him to develop Visceral Manipulation.
Between 1975 and 1982, Barral taught spinal biomechanics at England's European School of Osteopathy. In collaboration with Dr. Paul Mathiew and Dr. Pierre Mercier, he published d "Articular Vertebrae Diagnosis".

Using his work with Dr. Arnaud as a foundation, Barral continued to investigate how the thickening of tissues in the body creates areas of greater mechanical tension that, in turn, pull on surrounding tissues. That discovery led him to the theoretical and practical development of both general and local visceral listening techniques.

Barral's development of manual thermal diagnosis began in 1971 during another treatment session. While turning a female patient, he felt a strong emanation coming from her mammary gland. He learned she had been operated on for a tumor in that area.

Researching this phenomenon with other patients, he discovered just how accurately areas of stress in the body could be located by palpating the associated heat. Consequent research has added manual thermal diagnosis to many practitioners' diagnostic tools.

With the help of Dr. Serge Cohen, a Grenoble radiologist, Barral documented changes in the viscera before and after manipulation. They employed x-ray fluoroscopy and ultrasound to record changes in position, motion, and fluid exchange and evacuation. Later they conducted additional research with a team of electrical engineers and technicians using infrared emissions from the body.