Osteopathy
Andrew Taylor Still established the application of physical treatment as a specialized form of therapy in 1874, in USA. This form of treatment was based on Still’s hypothesis that all disease results from vertebral displacement and he coined it with the name - 'Osteopathy'.

Modern Osteopathy embraces Still's philosophy but uses more refined diagnostic and manual treatment techniques. Today, Osteopathy should not be viewed in isolation or separate from of health-care, and is an established recognized system of diagnosis and treatment, which lays its main emphasis on the structural and functional integrity of the body. It is distinctive by the fact that it recognizes that much of the pain and disability, which we suffer, stems from abnormalities in the function of the body structure as well as damage caused to it by disease.

In many people's minds, osteopathy is equated mainly with the treatment of spinal and other joint pains and problems. This limited care concept is largely an historical accident. As indicated above, the osteopathic profession sees itself as being relevant to a wide range of health problems, and not simply limited to the treatment of musculo-skeletal derangements.

Osteopathy is a hands-on form of treatment that cares for the health of the whole person. Osteopathic treatment is based on the relationship that the structures and systems of the body and the effect they have on the overall function of the person.