Osteopathic Medicine

Osteopathic medicine: a comprehensive system of medicine that emphasizes the relationship between the musculoskeletal structure and the function of the entire body.

Osteopathic medicine is one of two fully licensed comprehensive systems of medical care in the United States. Practitioners of osteopathic medicine are identified by the letters D.O. while allopathic physicians are identified by the initials M.D. Osteopathic medicine emphasizes the relationship between all organ systems of the body, including the musculoskeletal system (your bones and muscles) and the function of your entire body. Osteopathic physicians are licensed to prescribe medication and perform surgery. Although most are primary care physicians, DOs practice in all branches and specialties of medicine and have the same rights and responsibilities as MDs.
The popularity of osteopathic medicine has grown in recent years. Each year, approximately 100 million patient visits are to Dos, and the number of DOs has increased 67 percent since 1990. According to the American Osteopathic Association, DOs make up about six percent of all physicians (and more than eight percent of military physicians). You'll find DOs in local hospitals, private practices, community health clinics, academic medical centers and military hospitals—anywhere you expect to find a physician.
So, if DOs are fully licensed physicians, what sets them apart from MDs? It is mostly in their approach to a medical or surgical problem. The approach is rooted in their philosophy. DOs take a holistic approach to medicine; this means they focus on the total person, not just the particular symptom, illness or disease. DOs believe that all the systems in your body-including the musculoskeletal system-operate in an integrated way. Problems with one system can affect the others. Perhaps the most significant difference between DOs and MDs is that DOs consider the role of the musculoskeletal system in relationship to symptoms and illness. They have special training in recognizing and correcting structural problems through various manual techniques called osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT). Given this concern with muscle and bone, it's not surprising that you will find many DOs in sports medicine and physical medicine and rehabilitation.
How It Got StartedAndrew Taylor Still, an MD, considered to be the father of osteopathic medicine, developed the discipline in 1874 after becoming disillusioned with how medicine was being practiced. A Civil War surgeon, Dr. Still was appalled by the ineffectiveness of traditional medical treatment in helping wounded soldiers. Later, he watched three of his children die from meningitis, despite medical treatment.
He was particularly distressed by the use of drugs of this era. Many, such as arsenic and mercury compounds, he considered useless and even harmful. He focused on health, believing that the human body has the ability to heal itself. You could say he was an early proponent of "wellness"—now a common term among health care professionals. He identified the musculoskeletal system as an essential element of health, stressed the body's ability to heal itself and advocated preventive medicine, exercise and nutrition.
DOs and MDs: Many SimilaritiesIn many ways, most DOs are almost indistinguishable from conventional MDs. The primary difference is philosophical and the types of diagnostic and treatment modalities that can be employed in medical care. Throughout their training, DOs are taught to treat the whole person. While many incorporate manipulative techniques within contemporary medical practices, you might not see a huge difference between a visit to a DO and a visit to an MD.
It's not surprising that there's so much common ground. MDs have increasingly embraced a whole-person (holistic) approach to medicine—for instance, recognizing the effect of stress on physical health. Meanwhile, DOs have embraced the diagnostic and therapeutic approaches used by MDs, including the use of medication. The vast majority of DOs will use the same medical therapies and medications as an MD.
All states license DOs and some have separate licensing boards. In states without separate boards, DOs are licensed through the same process as MDs. Either way, all physicians (both DOs and MDs) must be approved by a state medical board exam to be licensed.
Both DOs and MDs attend four years of medical school, and applicants to both generally have a four-year undergraduate degree. After medical school, both DOs and MDs can choose to pursue a specialty, such as psychiatry, surgery, gynecology or obstetrics, which involves a three-to-six year postgraduate training program. The Journal of the American Osteopathic Association reports that 48 percent of the 2,570 COM graduates in 2004 were trained in osteopathic programs, in which the curriculum emphasized preventive medicine and a patient-centered approach.