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Manual Therapy Decreases Abdominal Pain and Dysfunction

Anatomy

The abdomen can be viewed as a vertical semi-cylindrical container with an upper base (the diaphragm); a lower base (the pelvis) which has a hole in it closed by the perineum; back and side walls made up of short, thick muscles and bones (lumbar spine, lower ribs and pelvic bones) and a thin front wall made up of muscles.

The abdomen contains three groups of organs:

  1. Stomach, liver, large intestine, transverse and sigmoid colons,
  2. Kidneys, adrenal glands, pancreas, duodenum, ascending and descending colons,
  3. Bladder, rectum, uterus, etc.

The abdomen is supported by the lower torso. The structural anatomy of the lower torso is discussed in our section on pelvic complaints.

Abdominal and Intestinal Pain

Abdominal pain may involve the stomach, small intestine or large intestine, colon, pancreas, and any of the urogenital organs. Clinically, any of those organs can be found to be restricted due to infections, surgeries or trauma. Surgeries are a primary cause of abdominal pain, as tissues become glued down by post-surgical adhesions.

Abdominal pain and dysfunction affects millions of people in the United States. This pain affects all aspects of these people’s lives and impacts the lives of their families and friends as well. If pelvic pain persists for more than 12 weeks, it is considered chronic. Symptoms may include abdominal, visceral (organ), pelvic, low back or leg pain. When you are in pain, as you move, you try to avoid the pain. This can complicate the original injury with compensatory movement patterns.

Abdominal pain may be due to direct trauma, such as a slip and fall, physical abuse, accident, surgery, or radiation therapy. Pain may develop or persist long after the original injury or surgery. Digestive diseases and diseases of organs frequently cause adhesions and pain. Infections may create tiny adhesions which can also cause ongoing pain or dysfunction. Abdominal surgeries or radiation therapy are frequent causes of abdominal adhesions.
 

Abdominal Treatments

Treatment methods vary significantly. When a patient does not respond to medications, physicians often recommend surgery to find, then cut (or burn) adhesions. Hopefully, the body heals from the surgery and you move on. But no matter how skilled the surgeon, the very surgery designed to clear adhesions can cause of more adhesions as you heal. Too often, this starts a repeating cycle of adhesions-surgery-adhesions-surgery-adhesions. This problem was highlighted in a study from Lancet: the British Journal of Surgery (Ellis et al)1 which noted that over a third of all surgery cases were readmitted to the hospital two or more times (mean) to repair adhesions after surgery.

We have helped many people who suffer from ongoing abdominal or pelvic pain and dysfunction. Our directors spent years studying techniques and developing protocols to restore patients’ bodies to a state of balance, harmony and increased function. Our treatment sessions are individualized and last approximately one hour based on individual needs. Treatment is one-on-one, and is in private treatment rooms. From your first visit, we use a "hands-on" approach to treat your symptoms and discover the causes of your pain. We begin by treating tight and dysfunctional areas in your body.

All of our treatment sessions are individualized and last an hour or more, based on your needs and scheduling opportunities. Treatment is one-on-one, in lovely private treatment rooms. From your first visit, we use a "hands-on" approach to treat your symptoms and discover the causes of your pain. We begin by treating tight and dysfunctional areas in your body.

Any patient with an active infection should consult her/his physician to address any medical causes of pain. However, if you have been unable to find relief from chronic pain or dysfunction, we suspect adhesions from prior infection, inflammation, surgery or trauma might be the underlying cause of that pain. In that case, it would be appropriate for you to consider a course of treatment with us.

A few minutes into your first treatment, our therapists will be providing a gentle but deep manual therapy to areas of your body where we feel abnormal tensions. This has been very effective in decreasing and frequently resolving pain symptoms. Our goals of treatment are to first decrease the adhesions causing your pain and dysfunction. Like Gulliver being freed from the Lilliputians, patients find their mobility and function begins to improve as these tiny but strong adhesive cross-links are broken. As that happens, we begin to restore alignment, balance and mobility to the areas that are giving you symptoms. We work into the abdominopelvic organs, then the pelvis, sacrum, thoracic and lumbar spines, the back and hip muscles, and any adhered connective tissues we discover. We work with you to improve your function, your tolerance for physical activity with the goal of returning you to an active, productive lifestyle.

Patients with pain generally discover notice positive changes within the first few hours of therapy, as our work decreases pelvic pain and other symptoms. As pain decreases and function begins to return, we educate in a lifelong preventive and restorative exercise program to improve flexibility, strength, lifting ability and endurance levels. Enhancement of personal and professional life generally follows as a result. We are glad to work hand in hand with your physician, if you and she/he are interested in that.

What should I expect from treatment?

The primary goals of our therapy (Wurn Technique®, patent pending) are to decrease pain and to increase mobility and function. We use our hands to find and decrease adhesions in tightened areas of the body until the tension releases. This results in an apparent decrease of adhesions, notable decrease of pain and improved mobility of the soft tissues.

A major focus of our treatment is in treating adhesions in the "soft tissues" of the body. Soft tissues include:

Most patients say they find treatment sessions interesting, informative and relaxing. Most patients with pain complaints usually begin to notice pain reduction or relief after the first two or three sessions. Treatment goals of treatment are to first decrease pain in any areas where you have complaints, and to free any adhered tissues causing your body to function at less than 100%. Then we work to restore alignment, balance and mobility to the pelvis, sacrum, thoracic and lumbar spines, the back and hip muscles, connective tissues, abdominopelvic organs and any other areas giving you symptoms. Finally, we work with you to improve your function, your range of motion, and your tolerance for physical activity so we can return you to an active, productive lifestyle.

Patients generally discover within the first few hours of therapy that our work is effective in decreasing their pain and other symptoms. After a few more hours, they begin to notice significant structural and functional improvement in their bodies. As pain decreases and function begins to return, we educate each patient in a lifelong preventive and restorative exercise program to improve flexibility, strength, lifting ability and endurance levels. Enhancement of personal and professional life generally follows as a result. We are glad to work hand in hand with your physician to help you achieve your goals.

If you have questions, we can schedule a personal consultation over the telephone. There is no charge for this consultation, but you must first complete a medical history questionnaire for us so we can better understand your case. If treatment appears indicated, we will send you all necessary paperwork. We may request clearance from your physician for the very few conditions which would prevent us from treating you. These include systemic diseases such as HIV and active cancer which could possibly worsen with treatment. Other contraindications are hemophilia, abnormal cyst and active infection.

Your treatment is always conducted in a lovely, private room. The first treatment includes an initial evaluation, and lasts up to two hours. Thereafter, treatment sessions are scheduled in one to two-hours sessions, less 10-15 minutes per hour for chart review. This equates to 45+ minutes per hour of uninterrupted manual therapy. Most patients say they find treatment sessions interesting, informative and relaxing.

As manual therapists who often work on delicate areas, we are sensitive to your physical and emotional comfort level. We regard you as an expert on your own body; we seek and appreciate your thoughts, feelings and input. We feel you should be fully informed in every step of treatment. We take the time to explain our theories and techniques while we are working with you. We respect your personal privacy. In accord with standard ethical guidelines, we provide gowns and whatever other coverings you may request, for those who would like to use them. Patients are invited to bring their partners to therapy with them, but therapy is individual - partners need not attend.

Therapist qualifications are a significant part of your comfort level and we invite you to visit our Clinical Staff Page for a brief introduction to our clinic staff in various locations, and to gain background on our physician and research advisors. Clear Passage accepts only the top manual therapists in the country for training in the Wurn Technique®. In fact, we accept less than one percent of the therapists and healthcare professionals who have requested training. Our therapists are thoroughly trained, tested and re-trained until they pass our rigorous certification process. All are personally trained and certified by both Belinda Wurn, PT and Larry Wurn, LMT and their certified Wurn Technique® instructors.

  1. Ellis H, Moran BJ, Thompson JN, Parker MC, Wilson MS, Menzies D, McGuire A, Lower AM, Hawthorn RJ, O’Brien F, Buchan S, Crowe AM. Adhesion-related hospital readmissions after abdominal and pelvic surgery: a retrospective cohort study. Lancet Br J Med. 1999; 353: 1476-80. PMID 10232313
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About our Book.

What physicians say:

Learn more about therapy for abdominal pain in our book Miracle Moms, Better Sex, Less Pain (publication date: 9/2009).

“This technique makes sense: to put 'hands on' the problem and nurture the body's innate desire to heal from pelvic pain . . . and related dysfunction. Read this book if you suffer from pelvic or digestive disorders, or if you are a doctor who sees patients with these problems.”
- Leslie Mendoza Temple. MD
Medical Director, Integrative Medicine NorthShore University HealthSystem
Professor, Northwestern University Medical School

“In the past treatment for adhesions has been even more surgery, which caused even more adhesions. Now with the amazing ‘Clear Passage’ technique, patients have a safe and effective alternative to surgery. . . . I know it does work and recommend it to all my patients with adhesive disease.”
- Jacques Moritz, MD
Director of Endoscopy Section and Division of Gynecology,St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center
Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons

“The Wurns are revolutionizing woman's health. Tried and proven, documented and studied again and again – the proof is in the results.We have shared many patients who had . . . complete tubal obstruction, scarring or intractable pelvic pain. I have seen their work help all of these conditions, and more. Their therapy is beyond surgical intervention; it taps right into the body's inherent healing capacity.”
- Dr. Randine Lewis, L.Ac.
Author of The Infertility Cure and The Way of the Fertile Soul