Osteopathy

Osteopathy, system of medical practice based on the principle that health depends on the maintenance of proper relationships among the various structures of the body.

Osteopathic medicine holds that true health involves complete physical, mental, and social well-being, rather than merely the absence of disease. In this system, the body has a capacity for health that the physician helps the individual attain. The osteopathic physician, therefore, treats the whole patient, considering such factors as nutrition and mental health in addition to physical symptoms of illness.

According to osteopathic theory, defects in the musculoskeletal system—the muscles, bones, and joints—influence the natural function of internal organs. To correct structural abnormalities, osteopathic therapy, or manipulative treatment with the hands or related mechanical means, is used. The osteopathic physician uses this treatment when appropriate, either alone or in combination with other accepted therapeutic methods such as drugs, surgery, and radiologic treatments, depending on the medical symptoms of the individual patient.

The fundamental principles of osteopathic medicine were formulated in 1874 by American physician Andrew Taylor Still, who established the first osteopathic medical school at Kirksville, Missouri, in 1892. Today 19 accredited osteopathic medical schools and more than 200 osteopathic hospitals operate in the United States. More than 38,000 osteopathic physicians treat some 35 million Americans annually. A doctor of osteopathy (D.O.), like a doctor of medicine (M.D.), is fully trained and licensed to practice all branches of medicine and surgery. Osteopathic physicians are licensed in all states and participate in all federally funded health programs.

An osteopathic physician’s education includes at least three and preferably four years of premedical study at an accredited college or university, four years of training at an accredited osteopathic college, and one year of internship. Graduates of an osteopathic college receive a Doctor of Osteopathy degree. Osteopathic physicians wishing to specialize must take an additional two to five years of residency training, depending on the field they plan to enter. Most doctors of osteopathy enter general practice or one of the primary care specialties (pediatrics, obstetrics, gynecology, and general internal medicine).