We are commonly asked what the difference is between an Osteopath and a Physiotherapist. Our Osteopath Jerome Smith spent the last 5 years working in a clinic that employs both osteopaths and physiotherapists, so he is uniquely positioned to answer this question.
In Australia, physiotherapists specialise in rehabilitation. Rehab is a very diverse field, with physio’s working for sporting teams, and physio’s working in hospitals helping stroke victims walk again. They are probably best known for work with soft tissue injuries. For example, if you were to tear a ligament in your knee, and required surgery, a physio is the best person to see to help rehabilitate that injury. Apart from ligament tears, things like torn muscles or tendonitis type injuries are other things a standard physiotherapist would work with.
Osteopaths look at soft tissue injuries like muscle strains, tendon and ligament injuries as well. But they also work on the skeletal system – bones, joints, and general structural alignment. The reason they look at both is because of the interactions involved – muscles and tendons attach to bones, ligaments attach to either side of a joint and so their actions become inter-related, and they directly affect each other.
So it makes sense to look not just at the soft tissues, or just at the joints, but to look at them in combination. For this reason Osteopaths are described as wholistic practitioners, meaning they look at the body as a whole.
Your Osteopath may also talk to you about things like ergonomics. For example, how does your posture at work impact your back or neck. They may talk to you about nutrition, in terms of the role food plays in your general health and wellbeing, and how things like sugar might affect your inflammation levels and affect your healing rate. And they will almost certainly give you advice on mobility or strengthening exercises that might help you prevent future relapses of your injury.
To learn more about what Osteopaths do or to enquire about a booking, click this link.
