Pain management and osteopathic manipulative medicine in the Army: new opportunities for the osteopathic medical profession.

Osteopathic manipulative medicine (OMM) is the most visible distinction between osteopathic physicians and allopathic physicians, and the osteopathic medical profession recognizes the proven clinical efficacy and value of OMM. The recently published report by the US Army Surgeon General's Pain Management Task Force provides a strong endorsement for the Army to increase the practice of OMM, to create OMM continuing medical education opportunities, and to improve research in OMM's role in pain management. This comprehensive restructuring of the Army's approach to pain management provides a unique opportunity for the civilian osteopathic medical profession-the true OMM experts-to collaborate with Army osteopathic physicians in OMM training, teaching, and research.