Naprapathy involves the hands-on evaluation and treatment of the muscles, ligaments, tendons, and their surrounding connective tissue, it focuses on the treatment of neuro-musculoskeletal conditions. Doctors of naprapathy are connective tissue specialists, but are not doctors of medicine and are not equivalent to those that hold the MD degree. Tension in the connective tissue can cause a structural imbalance, naprapaths gently manipulate the affected tissue with their hands, allowing the tension to be released and thereby restoring balance.

A good example of typical naprapathic work centers around assistance and healing that can be provided for spinal related injuries. When ligaments surrounding the spine become tightened or constricted, they become known as a ‘ligatite’. Problems with the spine can cause much more than a case of discomfort if left untreated! A naprapaths job is to locate the ligatites, understand it’s affects on their patient and then do something about it. Since ligatites are formed by scar tissue, which is inherently less flexible than healthy ligaments, as a result, they can affect and interfere with the nerves that they encase, which will cause a malfunction in the nerves target area, for example, if the nerve controls the stomach, the ligatite may cause digestion problems.

The task of the naprapath, is to locate the ligatite, understand it’s effects, and then do something about it. Gentle manipulations can help to soothe and ease the tension around the spine, freeing up the spinal nerves to function normally once again. For example, the ligatite may be constricting the stomach nerve, resulting in indigestion and acid reflux, but once treated, these symptoms should disappear. It is important to move forward with treatment of any ligatites that have been identified, as without treatment, the area of ligature tension causes stress, which can in turn trigger more ligaments to tighten and ligatites to form, forming new or larger ligatites – and resulting in further symptoms. As with any illness, it is important to treat the problem as early as possible.

Availability

The oldest and largest naprapathic school is the National College of Naprapathic Medicine in Chicago. The NCNM offers a four-year program, a 3-year accelerated program and a five-year program. Graduates receive a DN or Doctor of Naprapathy degree. In Illinois, Naprapathic treatment is covered by Blue Cross, Blue Shield, Humana and Prudential Insurance.

Naprapaths in the US are licensed as in Illinois and New Mexico, regulated in Ohio and may also practice in California, New York, Florida, Texas, Washington and other states where freedom of access statutes permit one to practice as a naprapathic doctor without a license. Although the term Oakley Smith Method is trade marked, the word naprapathy is not.

Psychotherapy (and hypnotherapy) are within the scope of practice for Naprapaths and Naprapaths who practice psychotherapy are eligible for membership in the Chicago Open Chapter for the Study of Psychoanalysis.

Research

Research conducted at the Department of Environmental Medicine in Sweden, compared naprapathy with evidence-based care for back or neck pain. Focused specifically on neck pain, disability and perceived recovery. Of 409 patients in the trial, results at 7 and 12 week follow-ups showed statistically significant differences in the groups, and favored the naprapathy group. At the 12 week follow-up point, a higher proportion in the naprapathy group had improved. The study concluded that for back and neck patients, naprapathy might be an alternative to consider over & above traditional medical approaches.