Manual therapy is one of those topics that seems to quickly descend to polarised debates in musculoskeletal rehabilitation. Today, we're talking about what manual therapy looks like and does in the 2020s.

Dr Jodi Young explains the mechanisms of manual therapy, the typical effects and why you might think about adding manual therapy as another tool in your physical therapy toolkit. Dr Young is the Director of Research for the Doctor of Science in Physical Therapy program at Bellin College in Green Bay, Wisconsin, where she mentors doctoral clinicians and helps turn clinical and educational research questions into meaningful, publishable research. She is also a fellow of the American Academy of Orthopaedic Manual Physical Therapists.

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RESOURCES

Modern definition and description of manual therapy: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38457654/

Modern way to teach and practice manual therapy: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38773515/

Living review of manual therapy mechanisms: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40100908/

Unravelling the mechanisms of manual therapy: https://www.jospt.org/doi/10.2519/jospt.2018.7476

Developing manual therapy frameworks: https://www.jospt.org/doi/10.2519/josptopen.2023.0002

Integrating person-centred concepts and modern manual therapy: https://www.jospt.org/doi/full/10.2519/josptopen.2023.0812

How do patients believe manual therapy works? https://www.jospt.org/doi/10.2519/josptopen.2025.0149

Does it matter how you apply spinal manipulation? JOSPT Insights ep 221: https://pod.link/1522929437/episode/NmM0MTg4OGMtODMwMi00ZTA3LTg1NzUtYjY2ZjBiMThiZGUy