Physical examination
Once an osteopath understands your health concerns and needs, they will carry out a physical examination. Depending on where your injury or pain is, you may need to remove some outer clothing for a proper examination. Patient privacy will be always respected during this process. Be sure to wear comfortable, flexible, and appropriate underwear and clothing.
Your osteopath may carry out some clinical tests. These may include diagnostic, orthopaedic, or neurological tests, or movement and postural assessments, which will help them to determine how best to manage your condition.
The examination may include passive and active movements. The osteopath may lift your arms or legs and you may be asked to bend over or perform an activity.
Osteopathy takes a whole-body approach to assessment and clinical management, so your osteopath may look at the area that is troubling you, as well as other parts of your body. For example, if you have a sore knee, your osteopath may also look at your ankle, pelvis and back.
During this examination, you may be asked to carry out simple stretches or movements to allow the osteopath to analyse your posture and mobility and assess your injury or pain. The osteopath will check the health of your joints, ligaments, and soft tissues by touching the area of concern – this is known as palpation.
