title: Benefits of osteopathic manipulative treatment for hospitalized elderly patients with pneumonia.
abstract: While osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) is thought to be beneficial for patients with pneumonia, there have been few clinical trials--especially in the elderly. The authors' pilot study suggested that duration of intravenous antibiotic use and length of hospital stay were promising measures of outcome. Therefore, a larger randomized controlled study was conducted. Elderly patients hospitalized with acute pneumonia were recruited and randomly placed into two groups: 28 in the treatment group and 30 in the control group. The treatment group received a standardized OMT protocol, while the control group received a light touch protocol. There was no statistical difference between groups for age, sex, or simplified acute physiology scores. The treatment group had a significantly shorter duration of intravenous antibiotic treatment and a shorter hospital stay.
authors.affiliation: Division of Medicine, Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine, 800 W Jefferson St, Kirksville, MO 63501, USA.
authors.forename: D R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Noll
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Shores
authors.forename: R G
authors.initials: RG
authors.lastname: Gamber
authors.forename: K M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Herron
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Swift
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006760:Hospitalization; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008349:Manipulation, Orthopedic / Q000379:methods*; D008875:Middle Aged; D010021:Osteopathic Medicine / Q000379:methods; D011014:Pneumonia / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000401:mortality / Q000534:rehabilitation*; D012016:Reference Values; D015996:Survival Rate; D016896:Treatment Outcome