Arte shows areas of application of osteopathy
A few weeks ago, a very interesting documentary about osteopathy appeared on Arte. It also presented areas of application. Critical aspects were also explained. A representative of the Institute for Osteopathic Studies gave an interview (in a different context) and refuted counter-arguments. I am showing you the link to the documentation in full length and the statement of the osteopathy representatives here.
Interest in osteopathy is growing steadily in Germany. A few years ago, Stiftung Warentest conducted a study and assessed patient satisfaction with osteopathy in particular. Last year, a study by the Forsa Institute came to a similarly positive conclusion.
Unfortunately, there are always reports from patients who have not had a good experience. This may also be due to the fact that training to become an osteopath is not standardized in Germany. There is also no recognized professional title of osteopath.
Many people who have never received osteopathic treatment do not yet know what osteopathy is. It is often equated with physiotherapy or chiropractic. Some believe that blockages are released or joints are “adjusted”. However, this is technically and factually incorrect.
The Arte documentary brings a lot of light into the darkness and gives a very good overview of what osteopathy is, what areas of application there are and what an osteopath does.
Unfortunately, the documentary is no longer available in the media library.
Health insurance companies and osteopathy
In the film, a representative of the Medical Service of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds (GKV-Spitzenverband) has his say. Among other things, the association prepares assessments of individual health services (IGeL). These are services that are offered by doctors and often have to be paid for by the patients themselves. The IGeL Monitor is controversial because the critical assessments often seem incomprehensible. Observers also believe that economic interests may play a role in the evaluations due to its financing by the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Funds.
In an interview with Helge Franke from the Institute for Osteopathic Studies, the Verband der Osteopathen Deutschland e. V. (VOD) has collected some points of criticism of the IGeL Monitor and provided counter-arguments. The interview was published before the program was broadcast in response to an article in Apothekenumschau.
Many studies on the effectiveness of osteopathy were therefore simply ignored by the health insurance companies or were found to have methodological weaknesses. The IGeL report itself has serious methodological weaknesses. Helge Franke: “Several (osteopathy, editor’s note) studies were not read in the original, unclear data was not requested, study statements were relativized (without the necessary background knowledge), evaluations were incorrectly translated and standardized evaluation bases were arbitrarily changed”.
Another major problem is that critics of osteopathy apply the methodological standards of pharmaceutical research when assessing the quality of osteopathic studies. There, placebos (drugs without active ingredients) are administered to a group of test subjects when testing drugs. With manual therapies (as with other methods of complementary medicine), however, this practice has its limits. An osteopath cannot “sham treat”. It is not possible to pretend to treat.
Read the complete interview “Osteopathy for the treatment of non-specific back pain – questions and answers on the results of the IGeL Monitor” (PDF) with Helge Franke from the Institute for Osteopathic Studies.
I will be happy to answer any further questions about osteopathy in the comments or in a personal consultation.
