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Until the end of the nineteenth century, manual manipulative methods were primarily used to correct gross structural problems such as dislocations or spinal deformities. The
methods used were based on observation or experiment, not on theory and were often extremely forceful, with a minimum of scientific logic to support their use. The same could have been said for much of medical practice until
the end of the century.
Mr Andrew Taylor Still (1828-1917)
The ‘Father’ of Osteopathy
The man at the heart of this foundation was Andrew Taylor Still, born in 1828 in Jonesburgh, Virginia. Andrew attended a typical frontier school. During this period he displayed a great interest in the
natural environment. His medical training began when he was able to help and learn from his father, who was a doctor himself and other practicing doctors of medicine. He attended the College of Physicians
and Surgeons in Kansas city but before completing the course, enlisted in the army. During the American Civil War he served as a surgeon and rose to the rank of major.
Following the war he continued to study the nature of health and disease. He found current theory and practice inadequate. He noted that he treated his patients as other doctors did, some of them got
well but others died. Both young and old, got sick and got well again without the assistance of the medical doctor. He studied the human
body in detail, its structure and the relationship between structure and function. He became convinced that only through the understanding of this relationship could an understanding be
achieved of the malfunctions of the body, i.e. disease.
Still sought a philosophy upon which to base his practice which would not vary with every new ‘wind’ of principle or experiment, but which would have a scientific
basis. He sought this at a time when modern science and methods of research were unknown and he devoted himself to the study and
analysis of all the existing knowledge available to him. On 29th August 1874 he was registered as a practice physician in Macon County, Missouri.
Shortly after this he announced the results of his year of study. He stated three fundamental principles upon which he would base his practice of medicine. These were:
- The body produces its own healing substances
- Health is dependant upon structural integrity
- Perverted structure is a fundamental cause of disease
Besides these principles he also originated a system of manipulation. Basing his philosophy of practice upon these principles, he proceeded to compare manipulative therapy with other methods, then used
by doctors, such as drugs and surgery.
In many cases he found that the use of manipulative methods made drugs and operations unnecessary.
These concepts and theories were proved in his clinical experience. He developed the art of manipulative therapy, based on the knowledge of human anatomy, physiology and chemistry
and above all, on his new found discovery of the vital inter-relationship between the structure of the body and its function.
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