2020 Lowe St  Fort Collins, CO Suite 202

WHAT IS OSTEOPATHIC MEDICINE?

Photo of Andrew Taylor Still MD DO founder of Osteopathic Medicine, older image from over 100 years ago. Smiling older gentleman holding walking stick wearing suspenders. Sepia toned image

“To find health should be the object of the doctor; anyone can find disease”

Osteopathic medicine is a patient-focused approach to health care that considers every aspect of the patient, including their physical, personal, and spiritual well-being. 

Osteopathy is an American practice of medicine developed over a hundred years ago by Andrew Taylor Still, MD DO. Understanding that the body is more than just a sum of its parts, osteopathic physicians (Doctors of Osteopathy, or DOs) promote the patient’s innate capability to heal by addressing the interrelationship of the body’s nerves, muscles, bones, connective tissue, organs, etc. Its practice combines behavioral, chemical, physical, spiritual, and biological factors.

A key aspect of Osteopathy includes hands-on treatment called Osteopathic Manipulative Treatment (OMT). OMT is the therapeutic application of manual techniques by an Osteopathic doctor to address the changes in body structure and improve physiologic function. OMT techniques range from gentle palpation to more direct manipulation techniques. It is, therefore, unique to other physical modalities.

An Osteopathic doctor (DO) in the United States is a licensed physician who focuses on physiologic manipulative to help your body heal itself with a holistic approach. Osteopathic physicians are licensed to prescribe medicine and practice in all medical and surgical specialties and subspecialties. You will see us DOs in clinics, hospitals, ORs, emergency rooms, etc.

The four tenets of Osteopathic Philosophy, Principles, and Practice include:

  1. The body is a unit: mind, body, spirit
  2. The body is capable of self-regulation, self-healing, and health maintenance
  3. Structure and Function are reciprocally interrelated
  4. Rational treatment is based on above