Naprapathy: A Hands-On Approach to Pain Management

Jan. 1 -- WEDNESDAY, Dec. 31 (HealthDay News) -- If you struggle with aches and pains that refuse to go away, you just might find relief from a long-practiced but relatively obscure alternative therapy called naprapathy.

Naprapathic medicine treats connective-tissue pain by using hands-on manipulation, nutritional counseling and, sometimes, therapeutic "modalities," such as heat, ultrasound, or cold laser therapy. Connective tissue, which includes ligaments, tendons and muscle, is the material inside the body that supports many of its parts.

"Naprapathy is hands-on connective tissue manipulation therapy, plus nutritional counseling," said Dr. Paul Maguire, president of the National College of Naprapathic Medicine in Chicago.

"It's noninvasive, so there's no downside to it, and it's a feel-good type of treatment that gets results," he said. Plus, it's a treatment that's been around for a long time, he added, noting that his school is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year.

"Naprapathy is a gentle system of manipulation that can relieve the pinching of areas causing restriction to nerves," Maguire explained.

Conditions that may be helped by naprapathy include carpal tunnel syndrome, back pain, headaches, neck pain, knee strain, sciatica, shoulder pain and tennis elbow, according to Maguire.

A recent study published in The Clinical Journal of Pain that included more than 400 people with back or neck pain found that those treated with naprapathic medicine were more likely to have symptom relief and less disability. Compared to standard medical advice, including recommendations for coping with pain and staying active, treatment with naprapathic medicine was 27 percent more likely to cause a reduction in pain and 18 percent more likely to cause a reduction in the risk of disability, the study found.

Overall, those who underwent naprapathic treatments were 44 percent more likely to perceive that they were recovered than those in the standard group, according to the study.