In pandemics massage your liver, report concludes
Scott McPherson
in influenza and infectious diseases
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1 Comment
"We've come for your liver!"
"But, Im using it!"
Forgive me if I am reminded of the hilarious skit from my beloved ensemble Monty Python. But that was exactly what I began thinking when I read the Google Alert coming from Bloomfield, Connecticut.
Bird flu survival tied to hands-on therapy
BLOOMFIELD, Conn., Oct. 10 (UPI) -- Chances of surviving a deadly avian flu pandemic would likely increase with hands-on therapy, even without antiviral drugs, a U.S. health newsletter says.
Integrative manual therapy in the area of the spleen and liver, for instance, would help fluid, blood and lymph flow appropriately, significantly boosting people's immune systems and helping them endure the feared pandemic, The Burnham Review said.
The review said flu patients back then who received manipulative therapy had a 0.25 percent mortality rate, compared to a 6 percent U.S. average. (incredulous bold mine)
"The results are striking," Editor Kimberly Burnham told United Press International.
"Some gentle manipulative therapy resulted in a dramatic difference in mortality," said Burnham, who has a doctorate in integrative medicine from Westbrook University.
What is really striking about this news report is the claim that there was a 6% mortality rate in 1918. And I doubt if there were so many patients who received this massage to have skewed the non-massagees to die at a rate three times that of the stated mortality rate from the virus, which has always been around 2% of those infected.
Since I do not know how to massage my liver and spleen, I assume I will need to go to a qualified professional liver massage person. I am guessing that a chiropractor or other such person could be consulted.
I also do not know how in Hades this organization came up with metrics for 1918 that somehow the established medical community missed. It is possible, I suppose, so let's mine this new data source for what it is worth.
Until then, I suppose this therapy is as good as any other. Wait, there's a knock on my door.... be right back.
Reader Comments (1)
This is the link to an article reference on the 1918 Influenza epidemic and osteopathic manual therapy.Hruby, R. J. and K. N. Hoffman (2007). "Avian influenza: an osteopathic component to treatment." Osteopath Med Prim Care 1: 10 [Full Text] www.om-pc.com/content/1/1/10
This is the link to The Burnham Review page with a lot of reference material to support the idea that manual therapy can improve immune system function. 8-10 An Osteopathic Manual Therapy Approach to Influenza, Bird Flu and other Infectious Disorders http://www.theburnhamreview.com/8-10_Influenza_OMT.html