10/04/2020
COVID-19 and Osteopathy
The epidemic of 2019 novel coronavirus (called SARS-CoV-2, causing the disease Covid-19), originated from Wuhan, China. The virus has transferred to a growing number of countries and is considered by the WHO to be a global pandemic. Early efforts have focused on describing the clinical course, counting severe cases, treating the sick and advice for the general public (WHO, 2020). The WHO continuously informs the global population regarding basic protective measures against the new coronavirus infection, in addition to updates on new scientific findings as the epidemic evolves.
The world is facing an urgent need to implement appropriate measures to protect the general public, in order to elucidate the epidemiology of the novel virus and characterise its potential impact. The impact of the epidemic depends on the number of persons infected, the infection’s transmissibility, and the spectrum of clinical severity. Leading journals have established resource pages, to share relevant knowledge, improve decision making and assist ongoing research (Cochrane, 2020; Lancet, 2020)
Updated resources regarding the role of osteopathy during this pandemic, describes a few primary studies on the efficacy of osteopathic manipulative treatment on respiratory conditions, especially pneumonia (NCOR, 2020). There are claims of osteopathy being able treat viral infections based on historical reporting from the “Spanish Flu” pandemic, but the quality of evidence does not justify the use of osteopathy on patients infected with coronavirus (Fossum, 2020). There has in recent decades been an interest in evaluating the possible effectiveness of osteopathic manipulative interventions as an adjunct to standard medical care in elderly hospitalised patients with pneumonia (Noll, Degenhardt, & Johnson, 2016; Noll et al., 2010). Due to the limited numbers of studies, it is difficult to conclude anything with regard to effectiveness.
The European Federation & Forum for Osteopathy sees the need to inform the European osteopathic community about the role of osteopathy, in this situation.
There is no credible evidence at present to support osteopathy as part of the cure for the coronavirus epidemic. The use of historical reporting to substantiate any claim for effectiveness of osteopathic treatment of influenza and/or pneumonia are speculative at best, and misleading at worst.
Consequently, our recommendation is to follow guidelines provided by the WHO, in addition to laws, directives and guidelines provided by national authorities. We recommend osteopathic associations to ensure that their members have access to and understanding of these, and act accordingly.
The EFFO Board
April 2020
Cochrane. (2020). Coronavirus (COVID-19) - Cochrane resources and news,. Cochrane,. Retrieved from https://www.cochrane.org/coronavirus-covid-19-cochrane-resources-and-news
Fossum, C. (2020). Osteopathy and the Influenza Pandemic 1918 Retrieved fromhttps://oialliance.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Osteopathy-and-the-Influenza-Pandemic-1918.pdf
Lancet. (2020). COVID-19 Resource Centre. The Lancet,. Retrieved from https://www.thelancet.com/coronavirus?dgcid=kr_pop-up_tlcoronavirus20&fbclid=IwAR0X9T4NJe7Lvgt2-xDLD2Yw8eUiwEr5bb8IzBwpm2lRCcOtuHEbnWkUHaA
NCOR. (2020). Can osteopaths contribute to the care and management of those with COVID19 virus? Retrieved fromhttps://www.ncor.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/CoronaVirusEvidenceUpdate23.3.20204-1.pdf
Noll, D. R., Degenhardt, B. F., & Johnson, J. C. (2016). Multicenter Osteopathic Pneumonia Study in the Elderly: Subgroup Analysis on Hospital Length of Stay, Ventilator-Dependent Respiratory Failure Rate, and In-hospital Mortality Rate. In (pp. 574-587). [Chicago, IL] :.
Noll, D. R., Degenhardt, B. F., Morley, T. F., Blais, F. X., Hortos, K. A., Hensel, K., . . . Noll, D. R. (2010). Efficacy of osteopathic manipulation as an adjunctive treatment for hospitalized patients with pneumonia: a randomized controlled trial. Osteopathic medicine and primary care, 4, 2-2. doi:10.1186/1750-4732-4-2
WHO (2020). Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) advice for the public. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/emergencies/diseases/novel-coronavirus-2019/advice-for-public
