Osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) during labor facilitates a natural, drug-free childbirth for a primigravida patient: A case report

This paper reports the use of osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) as an aid to labor and delivery in a woman desiring a natural childbirth. Throughout stage one of labor, osteopathic manipulative techniques were utilized as the sole method of addressing pain and facilitating labor in a 30-year-old primigravida with a history of low back pain and spondylolisthesis. Use of OMT to treat back pain in pregnant women during the prenatal period has been documented in several studies.1, 2, 3 and 4 In this case, OMT was used during labor to address back pain, to treat somatic dysfunctions, to minimize pelvic congestion, to improve rib motion and to calm the patient. The role of OMT at the start of labor made laboring at home possible. The correction of somatic dysfunction in the patient as labor progressed, helped to keep the patient's body in proper working function to prevent limitations to the progression of labor. The patient was able to undergo labor and delivery completely without the use of medication via any route for pain or labor augmentation as the patient desired. Stage two of labor for a primiparous female was on the quicker end of the spectrum. OMT for the laboring woman should be considered as a treatment modality to facilitate a natural childbirth.