The ability to detect minute modifications in the quality of tissue is the assessment skill that allows the osteopathic manual practitioner to help prioritize a patient’s course of treatment. These tissue “qualities” include congestion, dehydration, scarring, stiffness, density or loss of resilience, as well as motility that is an infinitesimal movement inherent to all living tissues. It is this sensing of the quality of the tissue, in combination with the position, mobility and vitality of the tissues, that allows osteopathic manual practitioners to determine the tissues or systems that need immediate attention.
~ Canadian School of Osteopathy
