Osteopaths at Clapham Osteopathic Practice are happy to help patients with any treatment listed above.

Whiplash

Whiplash injuries are frequently the result of a road traffic injury. As a vehicle comes to a sudden stop the head is thrust backwards at great velocity like the end of a whip. Whilst associated with car accidents, whiplash can occur on fairground rides and even from a simple fall. The result may be damage to neck and back discs, joints, ligaments and nerves. The sensitivity of the neck is such that whiplash symptoms can effect all of the body both physically and psychologically. The osteopathic approach is to work these injuries very gently over a number of sessions to carefully treat the tissue and joints. Soft tissue massage techniques will be used to soften the muscle before gentle manipulaiton or articluation techniques are performed in an attempt to restore natural movement ranges.

Fibromyalgia

Acute joint pain is often associated with fibromyalgia which is a disease of the central nervous system where normal, non-painful, neural messages are interpreted by the nerve receptors as pain. This leads to intense localised pain where there should be none. The symptoms of fibromyalgia include headaches, sleeping difficulties, poor concentration, stiff muscles and enervating tiredness. Some patients suffer occasional attacks allowing them to lead fairly normal lives. However, for chronic sufferers, this disease can gravely affect quality of life. There is no single cure, however much research is being done into various therapies to help ameliorate the disability associated with the condition. Osteopathic treatment is, of course, often used to treat the associated muscle pain and many practitioners combine this wiith acupressure or acupuncture to further relieve muscular pain.