Osteopathic care may improve pain and functional status in patients suffering from spinal complaints as described in the findings of the present literature review. However, there was a disparity in the observations made between studies conducted in the US and Europe with positive outcomes of osteopathic care only in Europe. Therefore, to firmly establish the osteopathic care as a positive factor in spinal pain management, larger study samples and long-term impact assessment is required.

The current study was targeted to evaluate the research done in the field of investigating the impact of osteopathic care for spinal complaints.  

The scientific literature was searched from peer-reviewed databases: Medline (Pubmed), Web of Science (Core Collection), Embase and PEDro. Grey literature sources ‘OAIster’ and ‘OpenGrey’ were also screened. PICOS (Population, Intervention, Comparator, Outcome, and Study design) was used to define the eligibility criteria. Four levels of effectiveness were set to evaluate the effects of osteopathic care on pain and functional status were evaluated using four levels of effectiveness. Assessment of risk of bias was done by using the Cochrane Back and Neck group and scored as ‘yes', ‘no' or ‘unsure'.

This literature survey delivered mixed results for the impact of osteopathic care on primary and secondary outcomes, i.e. pain, functional status, medications use and health status of the patients. Positive outcomes were reported for European studies contrary to negative results for US studies. But due to limited sample size and methodological differences, no discrete conclusion can be made.

A limited number of evidence suggested that osteopathic care might be effective in people complaining of spine problems. Further long-term studies with large sample size are required to establish the effectiveness of osteopathic care for spinal complaints management.