Dr.Still concluded that blood supply could be normalised a great deal by manipulative manoeuvres which relaxed the muscles and thus affected the free flow of blood. He declared, ‘The rule of the artery is supreme’. He was sure that the free flow of blood played a great role in overcoming disease.
Dr Still’s fame spread gradually. At no time, however, did he think his discovery to be complete. With the co-operation of his sons and doctors who were attracted towards his science, he founded a new branch of medical treatment which came to be known as Osteopathic Medicine. Dr Still planned to open a college of osteopathy. Assistance came in an astonishing way. Dr William Smith of Edinburgh, Scotland, was so impressed by Dr.Still that he offered to stay and teach anatomy in exchange for lessons in manipulative movements. The college at Kirksville, Missouri, opened in November 1892, and was given legal recognition.
From the beginning, the main aim of the college was to improve medical practice. It was not a ‘non-medical school’. Later it grew in stature and included all the arts and sciences of medical practice. Kirksville became a centre of feverish acitivity. Patients flocked from far and near in big numbers; a few stayed on after getting cured to continue their studies. The college grew far beyond the hopes and imagination of Dr Still. New colleges were opened. Osteopathy was growing fast in USA and UK. Dr Still passed his last few years sitting in the porch of his house on a hill overlooking the little town of Kirksville, where he could see the college building and hospital. A great experimenter, teacher and philosopher, he died on November 12,1917. By then, more than 5,000 osteopathic physicians were practising in USA and other countires.
Still expounded that Man, a remarkable creation of God, was a self-sufficient, self-maintaining machine. The machine could run smoothly and look after itself. Osteopathy recognised this great self-healing and self-maintaining power of the man-machine. It is not surprising that his theories evoked controversy. He was a complex man and his writings were difficult to understand. He could demonstrate and do things on his own, but could not put his ideas into writing in an organised form.
His lectures used to be followed by demonstrations of his treatment on patients, without explaining much about what he could find and how he could put it right. A lot has been done since his time. Now there is a slow but definite recognition of Stills’s theories. He says in his philosophy of Osteopathy that his great desire was to give a head start to a philosophy that could be a guide for the future. ‘Great development in osteopathy today is the true emergence of his said philosophy’.
After Dr Still, osteopathy has produced many giants. They have contributed to its refinement and development. Today with many osteopathic hospitals, colleges and activities of different osteopathic associations in different countries, this branch of medicine is taking giant strides. Manipulative therapy, as medical science prefers to call it today, is becoming popular with medical men. Many doctors who suffer from pain themselves and ultimately get cured by manipulative therapy, try to learn a few techniques and apply them on their patients with astonishing results.
Manipulative treatment is part of the therapy as mentioned in orthopaedic text books. Osteopathy and chiropractic (where the same aim is achieved by using a slightly different technique) manipulation have come to be accepted as effective techniques of manipulative treatment. The truth, however, is that not everybody can be efficient and proficient in these techniques. A long time needs to be spent on self-training. Also there is the difficulty of finding an appropriate teacher. Techniques cannot be learnt by just studying books. Manipulation should be treated on par with other medical procedures. Who can deny the fact that even surgery saw black days beginning with the hands of barbers before the invention of anaesthesia!
Currently osteopathy is practised the most in the United States, its birth place. In UK, the profession had a relatively slower development. A few osteopaths from American colleges have settled in Australia. The Scandinavian countries are fast heading towards providing manipulative care to the public. There are quite a few osteopaths in France. It was Dr.J.B.Mannel (1877-1957) who first introduced gentle vertebral manipulation without anaesthesia within the domain of traditional medicine.
Recently the world Association of Natural Medicine came into existence. It includes osteopathy, chiropractic, acupuncture, hydrotherapy, naturopathy, yoga, hypnotism, meditation, physiotherapy and homoeopathy. Its head office is in Switzerland and a world conference is held there every year.