The effects of soft tissue manipulation (Rolfing method) were evaluated on young healthy men using two dependent variables: 1) angle of pelvic inclination and 2) parasympathetic activity. Pelvic inclination was assessed by determining the angle of standing pelvic tilt (SPT) with an inclinometer. Autonomic tone was assessed by a measure of cardiac vagal tone (amplitude of respiratory sinus arrhythmia) derived from monitoring heart rate. Thirty-two subjects, preselected for exhibiting an anteriorly tilted pelvis, were randomly assigned to either an Experimental Group (n = 16) that received a 45-minute Rolfing pelvic mobilization session or a Control Group (n = 16) that received a 45-minute control session without manipulation. Dependent variables were assessed before the 45-minute session, immediately after the session, and 24 hours later. Comparing pretest to posttest assessments, the Experimental Group demonstrated a significant decrease in SPT angle and a significant increase in vagal tone. The Control Group did not show significant pretest or posttest differences. The results provide theoretical support for the reported clinical uses of soft tissue pelvic manipulation for 1) certain types of low back dysfunction and 2) musculoskeletal disorders associated with autonomic stress.

The effects of a soft tissue mobilization procedure, the Rolfing pelvic lift, on parasympathetic tone was studied in healthy adult men. Parasympathetic tone was assessed 1) by quantifying the amplitude of the respiratory sinus arrhythmia from the heart rate pattern and 2) by measuring heart rate. Heart rate patterns were assessed during the pelvic lift and during the durational touch and baseline control conditions. Two groups of healthy subjects were tested: Group 1 contained 20 subjects aged 26 to 41 years, and Group 2 contained 10 subjects aged 55 to 68 years. In Group 1, the pelvic lift elicited a somatovisceral-parasympathetic reflex characterized by a significant increase in parasympathetic tone relative to durational touch and baseline conditions. Group 2 did not exhibit a parasympathetic change during the pelvic lift. The results of this study contribute to our understanding of pelvic mobilization techniques and may help to explain why these techniques have been clinically successful in treating myofascial pain syndromes and other musculoskeletal dysfunctions characterized by reduced parasympathetic tone and excessive sympathetic activity.

Underlying Assumptions of Traditional Soft Tissue Mobilization and Movement Systems An underlying assumption of these soft tissue manual and movement-awareness techniques is that faulty biomechanical alignment and myofascial imbalance in one region will create compensations in distant anatomical segments (7,26,48). The net effect of these compensations will, in turn, be manifested by dysfunctional movement patterns in sit