Introduction

Today, only one branch of mainstream medicine follows the Hippocratic philosophy of medical care that centers on the patient, not the disease. It is Osteopathic Medicine and, currently, some 36,233 osteopathic physicians and surgeons offer this dimension in medical care.

Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine (D.O.'s) are fully licensed and recognized physicians and surgeons who stress the unity of all body systems. They emphasize wholistic medicine-awareness of proper nutrition and environmental factors; a hands-on approach to medicine; and a unique aid to the diagnosis and treatment of various illnesses known as Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment.

One of the Osteopathic concepts of good medicine is that the body's musculoskeletal system is central to the patient's well-being.

The system includes the bones, muscles, tendons, tissues, nerves and spinal column--about 60 percent of the body mass. This framework works with all the body's organs. It responds--properly or improperly--everytime a breath is drawn or any other body movement occurs. Besides being prone to mechanical disorders, the musculoskeletal system reflects many internal illnesses and may aggravate or accelerate the disease processs throughout the body. The osteopathic physician takes advantage of this fact in management not only of problems of the musculoskeletal system itself, but also in managing disorders affecting the rest of the body as well.

Osteopathic physicians utilize all of the recognized procedures and modern technologies for prevention, diagnosis and treatment of disease, including drugs, radiation and surgery. In addition, the D.O. assesses the musculoskeletal system by the use of a finely trained sense of touch with the hands in a process called palpatory diagnosis. Disorders found there are treated by the introduction of carefully applied manual forces, directed to the bones, muscles and joints, in a type of treatment called Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT), or simply "manipulation." Osteopathic manipulation of the musculoskeletal system is a proven technique for many diagnoses and treatments. Often, it can provide an alternative to therapies involving drugs or surgery.

Because musculoskeletal dysfunction can mimic many diseases, osteopathic manipulation is an important component in diagnosis, as well as a means of correcting structural problems.

For example, it has been well-documented that diseases of specific organs can produce pain in other parts of the body. Stomach ulcers consistently cause area of spinal pain and irritation just below the shoulders in the back. The radiation of pain to the loin is the reflection of pain and disability to the left shoulder following heart disease. In diagnosing such diseases, D.O.'s recognize that symptoms can be produced without actual disorder in organs to which pain has been referred.

Also, disturbances affecting the musculoskeletal system can cause symptoms that stimulate other illnesses. Among the most common causes of recurrent headaches, for example, is disorder of the cervical (upper) portion of the spinal column. Properly applied manipulative treatment, particularly directed to the head and neck, can often relieve headache symptoms when other remedies have failed.

Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment is often part of the medical treatment for stress headaches, sinus problems and pulmonary distress. Obstetricians often use manipulation to relieve low back pain during pregnancy or as additional medical treatment for menstrual cramps.

Studies indicate that Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment, as part of the total patient treatment, actually accelerates the rate of recovery from illness or injury, keeping hospital or home stays to a minimum.

By combining unique osteopathic principles with traditional diagnostic and therapeutic procedures, D.O.'s offer a balanced system of health care to both prevent and cure disease. The osteopathic approach is a true system of preventive medicine, treating the whole person, not just the disease.