The 3 research publications reviewed in this installment of The Somatic Connection, along with research reviewed in previous installments,^1-5 highlight the growing evidence base for the benefits of osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) and osteopathic manipulative therapy (manipulative care provided by foreign-trained osteopaths) for women. If we include research from other health care professions that use hands-on therapy (eg, chiropractic, physical therapy) that has been reviewed in The Somatic Connection^6-14 and previously published in The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association,^15-19 the list is substantial enough to warrant special recognition of the benefit of OMT and manual therapy in women's health. 

Perhaps the foremost contribution of OMT and manual therapy to women's health is intervention during the prenatal period. Intervention early in pregnancy has the potential to reduce morbidity associated with labor and delivery, such as preterm delivery and meconium-stained amniotic fluid,¹⁷ as well as reduce mortality rates in child birth.¹⁹ Preventing these types of complications could substantially reduce health care costs. Further research on these topics could form the basis for health policy changes in prenatal care. The improvement in hemodynamic control,⁶ reduction of labor duration,¹⁸ and reduction in pain during the late stages of pregnancy has been shown in osteopathic,^4,15,20 massage,¹⁴ and chiropractic¹² research. 

The literature has reported that up to 50% of women experience primary dysmenorrhea.²¹ In addition to the studies^22,23 reviewed in this installment of The Somatic Connection, osteopathic,¹⁶ chiropractic,¹³ and physical therapy² research articles have reported a significant reduction of the symptoms of primary dysmenorrhea after manual therapy. Urinary tract symptoms and pelvic pain have also been reduced with manual therapy^1,3 and physical therapy,^6-8 the findings of which have also been reviewed in this section. 

Research has also associated improvement in breast health with physical therapy⁹ and massage therapy.¹⁰ One report even described reduced depression symptoms in pregnant women after yoga and massage.¹¹ 

This overview is not a systematic review and meta-analysis suggesting proof, but rather an interim report describing the growing body of research suggestive of benefit in this area of women's health. It is my hope that this commentary stimulates more osteopathic research and practice in women's health issues. 

The mission of The Somatic Connection is to report and elucidate trends in manual therapy research across professions and around the world. Where applicable, we relate such research to osteopathic manual medicine research, and we will continue to review important research in this area that is at the heart of our profession. Readers are encouraged to send suggestions for research to be reviewed in The Somatic Connection to the section's editors at hhking@ucsd.edu or mseffingerdo@osteopathic.org.