Osteopathy Vs Allopathy

Osteopathic physicians, or DOs, are an off-shoot historically of allopathic physicians, or MDs. Although equally qualified medically, osteopathic physicians are especially trained in manual medicine, or osteopathic manipulative medicine. Osteopathic medicine was started in 1874 by A.T. Still. Dr. Still's focus in osteopathy was to increase the body's ability to heal itself. Allopathic physicians do not receive this training in medical school.

History

The terms "allopathic" and "osteopathic" arose around 1874 when A.T. Still, M.D., officially broke with mainstream medicine. Having lost his wife and children to illness with physicians unable to save them, he sought better methods of treating patients that emphasized the body's own unique healing process. Even before the deaths of his family members, A.T. Still had experience with what would become his osteopathic techniques: manners of positioning and realigning the body to decrease pain and improve function. The techniques he studied and created were also aimed at optimizing the body's ability to heal itself, and removing any impediments from this goal. Osteopathic medicine is now widely accepted, though this acceptance was hard-won. For years, DOs fought legal discrimination from the American Medical Association (the allopathic organization), hospitals and insurance companies, particularly in California.

Basic Differences

DOs and MDs are both fully licensed physicians. Graduates of either osteopathic or allopathic medical schools are entitled and qualified to pursue any specialty, including surgery. The two major differences between the two are certain training and philosophy. The training an osteopathic physician receives in medical school includes extensive courses in osteopathic manipulative medicine, or OMM. Through this hands-on approach, much emphasis is put on the musculoskeletal system and its effect on the patient's health. This is then a reflection of the osteopathic philosophy, which is a holistic one: the symptoms must be seen in the context of the patient, and the patient needs to be seen as a whole. For example, a person has a limited ability to breathe. The osteopathic physician is trained to look at the thoracic spine for such things as excessive curvature and vertebral position anomalies. A migraine patient may be assessed for cranial issues or cervical dysfunction. The osteopath may then treat and even resolve certain conditions through the use of OMM.

Licensure Requirements and Practicing Rights

Licensure requirements are similar for both osteopathic and allopathic physicians. Osteopaths are licensed through the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners (NBOME), while allopathic physicians are licensed through the National Board of Medical Examiners (NBME). Both are required to take a series of licensing exams, called boards, to graduate medical school and then to attain board certification after residency training. Both have unlimited practicing rights throughout the United States. However, unlike MDs, osteopathic physicians have limited practicing rights worldwide; few countries have granted unlimited rights. Several countries, like Ireland, have not yet granted rights to DOs.

Osteopathic Manipulative Medicine

As mentioned above, osteopathic manipulative medicine, or OMM, is a hands-on approach to patient assessment and care, specific to osteopathic physicians. Allopathic physicians do not receive OMM as a standard component of their education. The musculoskeletal system is at the center of OMM, and it is studied by the osteopath for indications of underlying pathology throughout the body. Certain conditions can be treated by OMM through a variety of techniques. These include soft tissue, counterstrain, high-velocity low-amplitude techniques (similar to a chiropractor's method of "cracking" a patient's spine), and myofascial release. Treatment is generally painless.