Still, MD founded osteopathic medicine in the late 1800's in response to what he thought was poor medical practice at that time. The circulatory system provides the integrating functions for the rest of the body. The musculoskeletal system contributes more to a person's health than only providing framework and support. The preparation and training of DOs is nearly identical to the training of MDs. Admission prerequisites and curricula are very similar.
DOs can sit for the MD boards if they are interested in pursuing a MD residency after graduation.
OMM is a modality used primarily to treat musculoskeletal problems and overlaps in its scope with physical therapy and manual medicine techniques. Also, DO schools place more emphasis on producing primary care physicians than do some MD schools. This means that during their clinical years, students at DO schools spend more time rotating through primary care specialties such as family medicine, pediatrics, obstetrics and gynecology, internal medicine, and psychiatry. Nevertheless, specialty training isn't out of the question for DOs. Many DOs seek and obtain residencies in surgical and non-surgical specialties.