What does it mean when a doctor is a DO?

Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine,  DOs, attend medical school for 4 years like their MD counterparts. They go on to residency training, and can practice in any area of medicine, like their MD counterparts. In addition to learning to manage medical conditions with lifestyle, pills or surgery, etc., DOs are trained in osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT). OMT is the therapeutic application of manual techniques by an osteopathic physician to address the changes in body structure to improve physiologic function. OMT is sometimes also referred to as osteopathic manipulative medicine (OMM). Although all DOs are trained in Osteopathic manipulative Treatment while in medical school, NOT all DOs continue to practice these skills upon graduation. 

For any medical condition, osteopathic physicians understand that each individual expresses health and disease differently and that the absence of disease does not imply the presence of health. Therefore, osteopathic physicians are trained to recognize changes in body structure that alter function which may contribute to “dis-ease.”

Dr Kronlage has continued to learn and practice OMM, and her style is gentle, without forceful manipulation.