trump's doc is an osteopath. does it matter?

as the world followed u.s. president donald trump’s every move after his positive covid-19 diagnosis, this weekend, all eyes were on dr. sean conley, the first osteopathic doctor to serve as the white house physician.

the origins of osteopaths

the practice of osteopathic medicine is distinctly american , reports the atlantic, dating back to the 19th century in the u.s., whereas allopathic medicine (the classical form of medicine) dates back to the age of hippocrates and ancient greece. while a doctor of medicine (md) attends medical school, a doctor of osteopathic medicine (do) is educated at a u.s. osteopathic medical school. as of 2016, osteopathic doctors make up about 8.5 percent of all doctors in the u.s. and are most common in rural settings .

despite the many websites promoting training and certification in osteopathy in canada, there are no government recognized or accredited colleges of osteopathy. only graduates from american colleges of osteopathic medicine accredited by the canadian and american osteopathic associations are eligible for licensing in canada.

where the two differ is in their approach. osteopaths focus on lifestyle and environmental factors, according to the american osteopathic association . they believe the body’s systems are all interconnected and use hands-on manual techniques, like spinal manipulation or massage therapy, as part of their treatment.

the road to top doc

conley got the top physician job in 2018 after being chosen by predecessor dr. ronny jackson, a decision white house medical staff said was made “without proper vetting,” according to usa today sun . it wouldn’t be the last time conley faced criticism.

upon releasing trump from the hospital this week, conley said , “though he may not entirely be out of the woods yet, the team and i agree that all our evaluations and most importantly his clinical status support the president’s safe return home.”

a little too positive

conley’s assessment of the president’s state of health drew criticism from doctors for not being honest and misleading the public. in fact, conley and his team have admitted they failed to disclose that trump received supplemental oxygen or that his oxygen levels had been twice below the normal.

“it came off as if we were trying to hide something, which wasn’t necessarily true,” he said on sunday .

in may this year, he also faced criticism after supporting the president taking hydroxychloroquine , an anti-malaria drug that the fda has warned against, and which has been repeatedly shown to not be effective in treating covid-19 patients. in a letter on trump’s use of hydroxychloroquine , conley said he and the president had “concluded the potential benefit from treatment outweighed the relative risks.”

md versus do: which one is better?

osteopathy was founded by andrew taylor still, who, according to britannica, “believed that remedies for disease are available in the correctly adjusted body, obtained through manipulative techniques and concomitant medical and surgical therapy.”

but if you are hoping to nail down which is better, it’s going to be tough. the internet is riddled with claims that support one or the other. osteopathy has been referred to as “little more than pseudoscience, based on the mistaken idea that manipulations of the skeleton and muscles — massage, basically — would cure disease.” the u.k.’s nhs says that while osteopathy can be effective in treating “conditions that affect muscles, bones and joints,” it also notes that there is no evidence to show that it works for other health issues like headaches or depression, as claimed by some osteopaths.

and if bedside manners are important to you, a study published in the journal osteopathic medicine and primary care, found that both medical doctors and osteopaths devote the same attention and care to their patients. in fact, researchers found no difference in the the amount of time mds and dos spent with patients, how much they focused on prevention, or how often they discussed issues like exercising, stress, and nutrition.

if you are in the market for an osteopath, you can check out the world health organization’s benchmarks for osteopathic training. in canada, you can make sure your practitioner is accredited and safe by searching provincial osteopathic associations’ list of clinics and osteopaths.

dduong@postmedia.com | @dianaduo
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