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Osteopathic medicine has made great strides in modern medicine. Once we struggled for acceptance; now we strive for distinctiveness. Many features make osteopathic medicine unique, but one of the clearest areas of distinctness is the integration of osteopathic diagnosis and treatment in the overall patient evaluation and treatment.
One area in which I think the osteopathic profession is lagging is the dissemination of the results of our work in the medical literature. To that end, we have two manuscripts that address the accuracy and role of osteopathic diagnosis and treatment. In an original research article, Katrine Bengaard, DO, Richard J. Bogue, PhD, and William T. Crow, DO present a thought provoking trial on the reliability of diagnosis of somatic dysfunction among osteopathic physicians and medical students. Although the results demonstrate that more needs to be done in this area, the researchers address an important deficiency in osteopathic literature.
Luis Liu Perez, DO, Jason A Sneed, DO, and David Eland, DO provide a thorough examination with an evidence-based review of osteopathic manipulative treatment for common conditions. The authors highlight the conditions in which use of OMT has been shown to be effective, and areas in which the data is inconsistent.
The second theme in this issue is hematology and oncology and there are two review articles in this category. The first describes when the skin is a site of metastasis, written by Stephanie Aldret, DO, and Lora Cotton, DO. The authors explain what cancers tend to metastasize to the skin, describe the mechanisms of this spread, and provide illustrations of such cancers.
In addition, two case reports focus on the hematology/ oncology theme. The first is about hereditary angioedema presenting as refractory urticaria, written by Matthew Wall, DO. In this case, he reviews the presentation and treatment of this unusual condition. The second case report, written by Eric Mitchell Neverman, OMS IV and co-authors, describes a case of squamous cell carcinoma associated with a chronic subcutaneous foreign body.
In 2012, we will also provide articles highlighting common procedures, and the inaugural article by Scott Klosterman, DO, and Candace Prince, OSM 4 explains how to complete a toenail excision. They give step-by-step instructions and provide helpful illustrations as well as examples of consent forms and helpful billing tips. We hope this section is valuable to our readers and we would like feedback to determine whether it should become a regular section of the journal.
In our patient education handout, Peter Zajac, DO helps patients understand asymptomatic bruising, which is a common complaint from patients.
Happy Reading,
Jay H. Shubrook, Jr., DO, FACOFP
Editor, OFP