As with any activity, there is always some risk and osteopathy is no different.
Osteopaths are fully trained to assess the individual, take down a complete medical history, perform relevant clinical tests and devise a treatment plan specific to the individual. This will minimise the chances of any treatment side effects.
Research has shown that 7 out of 10 patients reported improvement after their first treatment and 8 out of 10 after 3 to 4 treatments (The CROaM Study, 2013).
Side effects of osteopathic treatment
Approximately 50% of patients will experience very mild side effects which may include stiffness, light-headedness and tiredness for 24 to 48 hours post-treatment.
1 in 100 have reported a moderate reaction in which case the pain may become worse and last some time.
Serious side effects in which there is long-term damage effecting one’s lifestyle are extremely rare, but can affect 0.003% of patients (1 in 36,000 treatments).
