Learning more about Osteopathy and D.O.s

What is a D.O.?
Osteopathic Medicine
Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT)
How Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment differs from Chiropractic Therapy

What is a D.O.?

To become an osteopathic physician (D.O.), an individual must be a graduate of one of the nation’s osteopathic medical schools.  Applicants to osteopathic medical schools have completed a four-year undergraduate degree, have completed specific science courses, and taken the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) just as applicants to allopathic (M.D.) medical schools.

The osteopathic curriculum involves four years of academic study.  The curriculum emphasizes preventative medicine and comprehensive patient care, reflecting the osteopathic philosophy.

After completing the four-year training program, D.O.s serve a one-year rotating internship, gaining hands-on experience in internal medicine, obstetrics/gynecology, family practice, and pediatrics.  This experience ensures that osteopathic physicians are first trained as primary care physicians.  The internship provides every D.O. with the perspective to see and treat every patient as a whole person.

Most D.O.s will continue their graduate medical education with a residency consisting of two to six years of additional training.  Residencies are available in the primary care disciplines—family practice, internal medicine, obstetrics and gynecology, pediatrics—as well as other specialties such as neuromusculoskeletal medicine, surgery, radiology, psychiatry and sports medicine.

All physicians (both D.O.s and M.D.s) must pass a state medical board examination in order to obtain a license and enter practice. *
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Osteopathic Medicine
Doctors of osteopathic medicine are trained in a comprehensive approach to medical care.  They understand how all the body’s systems are interconnected and how each one affects the others.  They focus special attention on the musculoskeletal system, which reflects and influences the condition of all other body systems.

This system of bones and muscles makes up about two-thirds of the body’s mass, and a routine part of the osteopathic patient examination is a careful evaluation of these important structures.  D.O.s know that the body’s structure plays a critical role in its ability to function.  They can use their eyes and hands to identify structural problems and to support the body’s natural tendency toward health and self-healing. *
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Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT)
OMT is used in conjunction with other treatment modalities (medication, physical therapy, injections, and sometimes surgery) to relieve musculoskeletal pain associated with a disease and/or to hasten your recovery from illness by promoting blood flow through tissues.

Prior to using OMT, your physician will complete a comprehensive medical and structural exam to assess your medical issues and complaints.  Your physician will then use his fingers to palpate the affected areas.  He will also check your joints for restriction and/or pain during motion as well as check your muscles, tendons and ligaments where tenderness can signal a problem.  D.O.s can detect changes in tissue, however small, that signal injury or impairment.

Once the examination is complete, your physician will integrate this information with your medical history and a treatment plan can be established.

Your physician may then use a variety of OMT techniques to apply manual forces to your body’s affected areas.  The techniques are designed to treat structural abnormalities and relieve joint restrictions and misalignments. *
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How Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment differs from Chiropractic Therapy
Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT) is used to diagnose and treat injuries and illnesses, utilizes passive thrusting techniques, but also includes a variety of non-thrusting methods designed to affect muscles and soft tissues.  OMT also optimizes blood circulation to maintain and restore health while other forms of manipulation tend to focus more on spinal misalignment interfering with nerve transmission. *
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*Adapted from brochures distributed by the American Osteopathic Association, “Osteopathic Medicine” and “OMT:  Hands-on Care”.  For more information on osteopathic medicine, contact:  American Osteopathic Association, 142 E. Ontario Street, Chicago, IL 60611.  By phone:  1-800-621-1773 or on the web at www.aoa-net.org.