What is a D.O.?

A D.O. is a Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine.  Osteopathic Medicine represents one of two distinct schools of Medicine in the United States.  Osteopathic Medical schools issue D.O. degrees, while allopathic schools issue M.D. degrees.  Osteopathic medicine was developed by Andrew Taylor Still, M.D. in 1874.  Dr. Still developed osteopathy because he was disenchanted with the manner in which medicine was being practiced in his day.  He created a profession whose heart lies in the recognition of the body's ability to heal itself--a tenet which echoes the belief enunciated by Hippocrates more than 2,000 years ago: "Our nature is the physician of our diseases."  The osteopathic physician considers the body as an integrated unit, and patients are treated bearing this central principle in mind.  The osteopathic physician's philosophy is based as much on prevention as it on the diagnosis and treatment of illness, and disease.  Osteopathic medical students attend school for four years, equal to their allopathic counterparts.  The four years are spent in the study of basic and clinical sciences, as much as in allopathic schools, with an added focus on osteopathic concepts and manipulative medicine.  Upon graduation, a D.O. enters residency and may specialize in any branch of medicine.  In the United States there are both osteopathic and allopathic residencies which offer specialty training to medical school graduates.  (D.O.'s have the option to enter either an osteopathic or allopathic residency, while M.D.'s can only pursue allopathic residencies.)  Today D.O.'s are fully licensed physicians in the unlimited practice of medicine and surgery, recognized in all 50 states.  There are approximately 45,000 D.O.'s practicing in the United States, representing all medical and surgical specialties.  To learn more about osteopathic medicine, click below to visit the American Osteopathic Association website, or click on the article below.

www.osteopathic.org