Advance Articles

Pediatric lymphedema is a progressive condition of chronic swelling and soft-tissue damage, caused by impaired lymphatic function. The objective of this study was to systematically review and evaluate the evidence supporting the effectiveness of OMT in managing pediatric lymphedema and compare it to traditional therapies such as complex decongestive therapy.

The primary objectives of this study were to assess the current state of provider enrollment in the Oklahoma Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Mental Health Access Program (OKCAPMAP) and the number of consultations provided across the state, to determine if the program’s reach has associations with sociodemographic need indicators, and to report the most common conditions for which consultations were requested.

Based on the recommendations of the Special Commission on Osteopathic Medical Licensure Assessment, the NBOME established the Core Competency Capstone for Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine (C3DO). The objectives of this study were to describe the assessment and to ascertain the feasibility of administering it at multiple colleges of osteopathic medicine.

The objectives of this study were to gather all relevant literature reporting features of vertebrobasilar insufficiency (VBI) pertaining to atherosclerosis, with the aim to help provide evidence that may guide clinical practice in the use of manual therapy interventions and to raise awareness of the manifestations that VBI may present.

A small percentage of patients comprise a high proportion of healthcare utilization, particularly the costs associated with Emergency Department (ED) visits and inpatient hospitalization readmissions. The purpose of this study was to demonstrate a decrease in ED utilization and hospital readmissions in a selected group of super-utilizers post-intervention by a Community Care Coordination team and to determine cost avoidance.

Clinical guidelines are the backbone of evidence-based medical practice, shaping healthcare delivery and patient outcomes. To ensure that guidelines reflect the entire medical community, it is important that guideline-creation bodies have adequate representation from stakeholder groups with diverse viewpoints. To quantify the contribution of DOs to the body of literature guiding practice, author information was extracted from all US-based guidelines published in the years 2021, 2022, and 2023 listed in the ECRI Guidelines Trust database.

Sarcopenia is a condition characterized by the age-related loss of muscle mass and function that diminishes physical capabilities and increases the risk of falls, fractures, and overall morbidity. In this study, the authors utilized a rat model of sarcopenia due to disuse atrophy and examined the effects of STM on recovery of muscle mass and regulation of pro-/anti-inflammatory cytokines.

Simulation-based medical education (SBME) is a method for enhancing learner skill prior to initiating care for real patients. This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of the SBME lab to enhance the training of medical learners of OMM on hospitalized patients.

In late 2020, the National Board of Osteopathic Medical Examiners announced that the Comprehensive Osteopathic Medical Licensing Examination (COMLEX-USA) Level 1 examination would discontinue reporting numeric scores, only providing a Pass/Fail designation. The authors of this study generated a series of five hypotheses to investigate the perceived impact of the transition to Pass/Fail scoring.

Research on the effects of osteopathic manipulative treatment (OMT) on visual functions and conditions is very limited, so a pilot randomized clinical trial was conducted to assess the impact of one OMT session on patients diagnosed with suspected ocular hypertension or glaucoma.

This study aims to evaluate the influence of osteopathic listening tests on heart rate and heart rate variability markers, including the root mean square of successive differences and the low-frequency/high-frequency ratio, in healthy participants, and to contextualize the findings within existing osteopathic research on autonomic nervous system modulation.

The objective of this study was to compare longitudinal outcomes of patients with fibromyalgia, chronic widespread pain, or localized chronic low back pain to determine whether fibromyalgia is an extreme manifestation of the chronic widespread pain continuum.

The purpose of this study is to analyze first-attempt intubation success rates of Klippel–Feil syndrome patients by intubation technique and stratified by location and quantity of cervical fusions and a Mallampati score if reported.

The role of lifestyle has taken a renewed importance in disease prevention and chronic disease management. Osteopathic medicine has long focused on comprehensive, holistic care for our patients, and the tenets support the role of lifestyle medicine (LM) in osteopathic clinical care. In this commentary, the authors make the argument for incorporating LM more formally into the clinical curriculum at colleges of osteopathic medicine and will draw parallels with these two programs.

This pilot project investigated the mechanism of a previously undescribed technique of nonoperative carpal tunnel treatment, dorsal carpal arch muscle energy, which focuses on the dorsal arch (trapezium, trapezoid, capitate, and hamate bones) manipulating the bones to redome the arch, round the tunnel, and increase its volume.

Following the transition to a single graduate medical education accreditation system in 2020, leaders at American Association of Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine (AACOM) were interested in learning more about the research being done about osteopathic medical education leading up to that point in time. The objective of this scoping review was to identify trends in undergraduate and graduate osteopathic medical education and to determine where this information was being disseminated and the institutions who were creating the content.

Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is a prevalent inflammatory disease of the paranasal sinuses that may significantly impair quality of life. This study aimed to assess whether OMT focused on lymphatic drainage of cranial structures can provide immediate, as well as sustained, relief of CRS symptoms.

This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of “X” (formerly Twitter) in networking between osteopathic medical students and surgical residents, specifically assessing engagement rates and the potential of social media as a tool for mentorship in the osteopathic surgical community.

In this quality-improvement study, the authors investigated an educational program designed to help clinicians talk to their patients about gun violence, prevention, and available resources to support and treat those impacted by gun violence.

The study’s purpose is to determine the effect of an advanced vascular access educational module presented to hemodialysis nurses and technicians, focusing on physical examination findings to identify a dialysis access at risk for malfunction.

In this Clinical Practice article, the authors describe their experience of utilizing a multidisciplinary team (composed of a gynecologic surgeon trained in advanced pelvic surgery and endometriosis, a urologist, a colorectal and/or general surgeon, a cardiothoracic surgeon, and a radiologist experienced in gynecologic imaging) to increase the likelihood of providing cost-effective care and delivering adequate, evidence-based treatment of endometriosis.

This case report details the presentation, diagnosis, and management of a newborn Native American male with non-Herlitz junctional epidermolysis bullosa, a rare diagnosis specifically in the Native American population.

Urinary incontinence (UI) in the powerlifting community has been a hot topic due to its noticeability during competition and the burden it places on female athletes who experience it. The objectives of this study were to determine whether UI in elite female powerlifters is correlated with any musculoskeletal diagnoses and to further evaluate potentially contributing factors for UI within this group.

The goal of this article is to discuss the impact of overhead motions on the shoulder, with a primary focus on throwing, as well as to highlight the osteopathic approach to assessment, treatment, management, and prevention.