Benefits of osteopathic manipulative treatment for hospitalized elderly patients with pneumonia

J Am Osteopath Assoc. 2000 Dec;100(12):776-82.

Abstract

While osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) is thought to be beneficial for patients with pneumonia, there have been few clinical trials--especially in the elderly. The authors' pilot study suggested that duration of intravenous antibiotic use and length of hospital stay were promising measures of outcome. Therefore, a larger randomized controlled study was conducted. Elderly patients hospitalized with acute pneumonia were recruited and randomly placed into two groups: 28 in the treatment group and 30 in the control group. The treatment group received a standardized OMT protocol, while the control group received a light touch protocol. There was no statistical difference between groups for age, sex, or simplified acute physiology scores. The treatment group had a significantly shorter duration of intravenous antibiotic treatment and a shorter hospital stay.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial
  • Controlled Clinical Trial
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Acute Disease
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Chi-Square Distribution
  • Female
  • Follow-Up Studies
  • Hospitalization
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Manipulation, Orthopedic / methods*
  • Middle Aged
  • Osteopathic Medicine / methods
  • Pneumonia / diagnosis
  • Pneumonia / mortality
  • Pneumonia / rehabilitation*
  • Reference Values
  • Survival Rate
  • Treatment Outcome