Osteopathic manipulative treatment for postoperative pain.

Osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) is an important aspect of pain management and disease prevention. Advantages of OMT administered postoperatively include easy implementation and cost-effectiveness in terms of shortened hospital stays resulting from effective relief of acute pain. Patients who receive morphine preoperatively and OMT postoperatively tend to have less postoperative pain and require less intravenously administered morphine. In addition, OMT and relief of pain lead to decreased postoperative morbidity and mortality and increased patient satisfaction. Also, soft tissue manipulative techniques and thoracic pump techniques help to promote early ambulation and body movement.