What’s It Mean if My Doctor Is a DO?
And how is this designation different from an MD?
By Elaine K. Howley, Contributor Nov. 9, 2018, at 11:05 a.m.
Doctors must undergo extensive training to be able to properly diagnose and treat illness and injury. Years of schooling followed by many more years of intensive residency, internship and fellowship training enable most doctors to perform well when treating the vast range of problems that can afflict the human body. As a stamp of that authority, doctors typically use initials after their name that specify which degree they've completed and other earned distinctions.
While most doctors you encounter are likely to have the initials MD, meaning "doctor of medicine," after their name, there is another, equally well-regarded set of initials you might see: DO, which stands for "doctor of osteopathic medicine." That refers to a specific approach to medical education that began in the mid-19th century.
https://health.usnews.com/health-care/patient-advice/articles/2018-11-09/whats-it-mean-if-my-doctor-is-a-do
