Medicine

This articleabout medical science. For substances that treat patients, see drugs, medication pharmacology.

Incontext ofanthropologyreligion, see Religious Science Practitioner, ChurchChrist Scientist, (Christian Science),medicine (shamanism)objectssupernatural power and/orsupernatural power that such items possess.

A notecontributors: This articleabout medicinegeneral. Please consider adding your contributions about medical topicsindividual articles rather than this page (manylinked below,theremore onListmedical topics),please think twice before adding more links here - otherwise this article could easily degenerate into an unreadable listlinks.

Medicinean areahuman knowledge concernedrestoring health. It is, inbroadest sense ofterm,sciencepractice ofpreventioncuringhuman diseases,other ailments ofhuman body or mind. However, itoften used onlyreferthose matters dealtby academically trained physicians surgeons. Theremany traditionalmodern methodsschoolshealing whichusually not consideredbe partmedicine instrict sense (see health sciencean overview).

Medicine has two aspects: both as an areaknowledge (a science),as an applicationthat knowledge (the medical professions). Evidence-based medicinean attemptlink these two aspects throughuse ofscientific methodtechniques derived from safety engineering.

The various specialized branches ofsciencemedicine correspondequally specialized medical professions dealingparticular organs or diseases. It may therefore be difficultdistinguish clearly betweenscience andprofession.

Tablecontents

1 Historymedicine
2 Medical sciencesmedical professions

2.1 Basic, supplementaryrelated sciences
2.2 Diagnosticimaging specialties
2.3 Disciplinesclinical medicine

3 Teachingmedicine
4 Legal restrictions
5 Institutionsmedicine
6 Related topics
7 See also
8 Entries not yet sorted

Historymedicine

Historymedicine -- Timelinemedicinemedical technology Museums & CollectionsHealth & Medicine

Medical sciencesmedical professions

Medicine has both its foundational sciences,specialized branches dealingparticular organs or diseases. The foundational sciencesmedicine frequently overlapother areasscience (such as veterinary science, biology or chemistry).

The primary medical professionsthosephysicians surgeons. Both professions have many specializationssubspecializations (see below). Dentistryclinical psychologyseparate from medicine instrict sense, butboth medical fields bywider definition ofterm.

Therealso many allied health professions (AHPs): nursing, medical laboratory science, pharmacy, physiotherapy (physical therapy), speechlanguage therapy, occupational therapy, dieteticsbioengineering.

Basic, supplementaryrelated sciences

Anatomy isstudy ofphysical structureorganisms. In contrastmacroscopic or gross anatomy, cytologyhistologyconcernedmicroscopic structures.

Biochemistry isstudy ofchemistry taking placeliving organisms, especiallystructurefunctiontheir chemical components.

Bioethics isfieldstudy which concernsrelationship between biology, science, medicineethics, philosophytheology.

Biostatistics isapplicationstatisticsbiological fields inbroadest sense. A knowledgebiostatisticsessential inplanning, evaluationinterpretationmedical research. Italso fundamentalepidemiologyevidence-based medicine.

Cytology ismicroscopic studyindividual cells.

Embryology isstudy ofearly developmentorganisms.

Epidemiology isstudy ofdemographicsdisease processes,includes, butnot limited to,studyepidemics.

Public health

Genetics isstudygenes,their rolebiological inheritance.

Histology isstudy ofstructuresbiological tissues by light microscopy, electron microscopyhistochemistry.

Immunology isstudy ofimmune system, which includesinnateadaptive immune systemhuman,example.

Microbiology isstudymicroorganisms, including protozoa, bacteria, fungi,viruses.

Neuroscience iscomprehensive termthose disciplinesscience thatrelated tostudy ofnervous system. A main focusneuroscience isbiologyphysiology ofhuman brain.

Pathology isstudydisease -causes, course, progressionresolution thereof.

Anatomical pathology -- Biochemical pathology -- Forensic Pathology

Pharmacology isstudydrugstheir actions.

Physiology isstudy ofnormal functioning ofbody.

Toxicology isstudyhazardous effectsdrugspoisons.

Diagnosticimaging specialties

Clinical biochemistry

Clinical microbiologyconcerned within vitro diagnosispathogens such as bacteria, fungi,protozoa.

Radiologyconcernedimaging ofhuman body, e.g. by x-ray, x-ray computed tomography, ultrasonographynuclear magnetic resonance tomography.

Interventional radiologyconcernedusing images (usually from CT or ultrasound machines)guideradiologistdo procedures such as biopsies, arteriogramsembolizations.

Nuclear Medicine In nuclear medicine, radioactive substancesusedin vivoin vitro diagnostics. Another fieldnuclear medicineradiation therapy, i.e.therapeutic useradioactive substances as well as other sourcesionizing radiation.

Disciplinesclinical medicine

Anesthesiology isclinical discipline concernedproviding anesthesia as well asfieldresearch associatedit.

Dermatologyconcerned withskinits diseases.

Emergency Medicineconcerned withdiagnosistreatmentacute or life-threatening conditions, including trauma, surgical, medical, pediatric,psychiatric emergencies.

General practice or family medicine or primary care

Intensive care medicineconcerned withtherapypatientsseriouslife-threatening disease or injury. Intensive care medicine employs invasive diagnostic techniques(temporary) replacementorgan functions by technical means.

Internal medicineconcerneddiseasesinner organssystemic dieseases, i.e. such that affectbody aswhole. Thereseveral subdisciplinesinternal medicine:

Cardiologyconcerned withheartcardiovascular systemtheir diseases.

Gastroenterologyconcerned withorgansdigestion.

Endocrinologyconcerned withendocrine system, i.e. endocrine glandshormones.

Haematology or hematologyconcerned withbloodits diseases.

Infectiologyconcerned withstudy, diagnosistreatmentinfectious diseases.

Nephrologyconcerneddiseases ofkidneys.

Oncologydevoted tostudy, diagnosistreatmentcancerother malignant diseases.

Pulmonologyconcerneddiseases oflungs.

Rheumatologydevoted todiagnosistreatmentrheumatic diseases.

Neurologyconcerned withdiagnosistreatmentnervous system diseases.

Obstetrics Gynecology (OB/GYN)concerned respectivelychildbirth andfemale reproductiveassociated organs.

Ophthalmology deals withdiseases ofeyetheir treatment.

Pediatrics or paediatricsdevoted tocareinfantschildren.

Preventive Medicine

Community Health Care -- Occupational Medicine

Psychiatry isbranchmedicine that studiestreats mentalemotional disorders.

Psychotherapy -- Clinical psychology

Surgical specialties

Theremany medical disciplines that employ operative treatment. Somethesehighly specialized andoften not considered subdisciplinessurgery, although their naming might suggest so.

General surgerysurgery ofskinit's contents, though now generally abdominal surgerymiscellaneous other surgical procedures.

Cardiovascular surgery issurgical specialty thatconcerned withheartmajor blood vessels ofchest.

Neurosurgeryconcerned withoperative treatmentdiseases ofnervous system.

Maxillofacial surgery -- Oral surgery (actuallysubspecialityDentistry)

Otolaryngology or otorhinolaryngology or ENT (ear-nose-throat)concernedtreatmentear, nosethroat disorders.

Orthopedic surgery -- Trauma surgery or Traumatology

Pediatric surgery

Plastic surgery includes aesthetic surgery (operations thatdoneother than medical purposes) as well as reconstructive surgery (operationsrestore function and/or appearance after traumatic or operative mutilation).

Thoracic surgerysurgery ofchest, usually relateddisease oflungs.

Vascular surgerysurgery ofblood vessels, usually outside ofchest.

Urology focuses onurinary tractsmalesfemales,onmale reproductive system.

Transfusion medicineconcerned withtransfusionbloodblood components.

Teachingmedicine

Medical traininglonggrueling, involving several yearsuniversity study followed by several more yearsresidential practice athospital. Most medical students spend some time as an intern --medical apprenticeship -- supervised by other, more experienced doctors. Entry tomedical degreesome countries (such asUnited States) requirescompletionanother degree first, whileother countries (such asUnited Kingdom) medical training can be commenced as an undergraduate degree immediately after secondary education.

The name ofmedical degree gained atend varies: some countries (e.g.US) call'DoctorMedicine' (abbreviated 'M.D.'), while others (e.g. Australia, Britain, Pakistan) call'BachelorMedicine/BachelorSurgery (Chirurgie)' (a double degree, frequently abbreviated 'M.B.B.S' or 'M.B.B.Ch.'). In either case graduates ofmedical degree may call themselves doctor. In many countries,doctoratemedicinenotPhD which requires original research, butlikedoctoratelaw (J.D.) or theology (Th.D.).

A graduate can then enter general practicebecomegeneral practitioner; orcan specialiseany one ofnumbermedical fields,becomespecialist; orcan becomesurgeon. No matter whatchoose, even more traininginvolved.

Legal restrictions

In most countries, itprohibitedpractice medicine withoutproper degreethat fielddoctors must be licensed bymedical board or some other equivalent organization. Thismeant assafeguard against charlatans. Occasionally, this has been seen as an obstacleproponentsalternative medicines or faith healing.

Institutionsmedicine

Clinic -- Hospital -- Hospice

Entries not yet sorted

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