The 14 branches (and specialties) of Medicine

Medicine is the science of health that is dedicated to the prevention, diagnosis, treatment and prognosis of diseases and injuries (health problems) of human beings. These figures are essential in maintaining society as a unitary entity, because without them, life expectancy would be drastically lower.

By 2016, it was estimated that there were 59 million health professionals worldwide. Based on this figure, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the interval between 2006 and 2015 as "The Decade of Human Resources for Health", marking a historical milestone in social and health welfare. However, there is still a lot of work to do.

According to the World Data Bank, in countries like Finland there are 3.8 doctors per 1,000 inhabitants, while that in regions such as Zimbabwe, for the same population density, only 0.2 professionals are counted sanitary. 80% of the workers in this sector work in countries that, as a whole, are home to half of the world's population. The ironclad health organizations in the poorest countries continue to be conspicuous by their absence.

This indicates that more and more doctors are needed, especially willing to help lay the minimum health foundations in low-income areas. Either because you are interested in the subject or because of an intention to become a doctor (or if you already are), it suits you know the 14 most important branches of medicine, with their theoretical bases and applications in society current. Here we address this issue, so do not miss it.

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What are the disciplines within Medicine?

Medical fields are as branching and intricate as the complexity of the human organism itself. For their part, medical specialties arise with the intention of filling a specific gap in the sanitary gear, always in search of well-being and to provide the best possible care to everything patient. Here are the 14 branches of medicine.

1. Allergy Medicine and Immunology

The world of allergology is booming, as more and more people are expected to react to one or more allergens (the current prevalence is 20% of the population). Understand the underlying mechanisms of this misdirected immune reaction, as well as genetic predisposing and possible treatments, it will help humans avoid life-threatening conditions such as shock anaphylactic.

A doctor specialized in this branch will be in charge of investigating and ending respiratory tract problems (rhinitis, rhinosinusitis, asthma), conditions skin allergies, adverse reactions to food and all those autoimmune pathologies that damage the patient's body in the short or long term.

2. Anesthesiology

Anesthesiology is the specialty of medicine that is responsible for accompanying the patient in those painful interventions that require the use of anesthesia. This branch can in turn be divided into different variants, since it is not the same to be an anesthesiologist in a palliative unit or in an operating room with a normal injury.

3. Dermatology

This branch requires little explanation: it encompasses all those professionals who are in charge of research and skin care. Very common pathologies, such as atopic dermatitis or acne vulgaris, are the main field of action of a dermatologist. However, as the skin is one of the first organs to show signs of other diseases, a patient with signs dermatologists can be referred to another specialty (for example, if the cause of a bruise or a petechiae is autoimmune).

4. Diagnostic radiology

Healthcare providers who specialize in this branch learn to use imaging technologies, in order to diagnose and treat diseases. It is divided into two variants: diagnostic radiology (detecting the disease) and interventional (using imaging techniques to guide a procedure).

5. Emergency medicine

As its name suggests, it is the branch of medicine that acts on a medical emergency or on any condition at its sharpest peak. In these scenarios, action is taken against the clock, since a lack of attention for minutes or a false step can lead to serious deterioration of the functionality of the patient's body or the death of it. Therefore, professionals in the emergency room must be highly qualified.

6. Family medicine

Family doctors are those who are at our trusted primary healthcare center. While other specialists are dedicated to treating specific pathologies, these professionals see the patient as a whole, following his vital history, trends and family history. They are the most general doctors and to whom we all go when we feel bad for the first time.

7. Internal Medicine

It is the branch that is in charge of maintenance of homeostasis of the patient's internal environment, that is, the correct functioning of the heart, blood, kidneys, liver and other vital organs for survival. Internal physicians are those professionals who maintain well-being and guide the patient during their stay in a hospital, coordinating with the rest of the professionals the steps to follow to avoid complications.

8. Genetic medicine

Doctors specializing in genetics aim to understand, treat, and infer the probability that a genetic disease will appear in the offspring of a given parental set. It is a truly fascinating branch of study, as the human genome and its mutations contain answers to many questions pathological in nature.

9. Neurology

A branch of medicine that marries applied knowledge with the basal sciences, that is, research. This specialty encompasses all those disorders involving the nerves and nervous system, from Alzheimer's to the effects of a hemorrhagic stroke. Neurologists do not seek only to treat a condition, but to understand its emergence mechanism and deepen the knowledge of the human mind, from a physiological point of view.

10. Obstetrics and gynecology

The professionals included in this branch are in charge of caring for and detecting problems in the female reproductive tract. They are also the health workers who accompany a woman in the antepartum, childbirth and puerperium period.

11. Ophthalmology

Like dermatology, this branch does not require much explanation, since we have all at some time gone to the ophthalmologist to check our eyesight or to graduate our glasses. These professionals generally treat common refractory problems in the general population, but are also responsible for address infections, glaucoma, pathological problems of the ocular environment, and certain reconstructive surgeries.

12. Pathological medicine

A pathologist is a professional physician who has specialized in the study of diseases. In other words, this branch analyzes at the cellular, tissue and systemic levels the mechanisms that underlie the appearance of symptoms of a disease. In these cases, it is not treated directly or a disease is diagnosed, but rather an attempt is made to know better to offer more effective solutions in the future.

13. Pediatric medicine

This branch is very similar to the family one, but specialized in the monitoring of a patient from birth to the end of his childhood stage. The pathologies that affect infants are very different from those of other adults (due to a less developed immune system), so they must be analyzed and addressed separately.

14. Preventive medicine

Preventive medicine aims raise awareness and educate the population in the health field, with the aim of preventing preventable diseases from appearing. This branch encourages good hygiene practices, maintaining an active lifestyle, avoiding chronic stress, exercising, and much more. While many conditions are unavoidable, many others can be addressed before a healthy life appears.

Resume

As you may have seen, the branch is divided into as many fields as there are anatomical characteristics of the human body. Some of these disciplines even escape the body, since variants such as family medicine or preventive also analyze the patient from a socioeconomic, family point of view, or as part of a population higher.

Medicine begins with prevention, and does not end until the patient experiences their last heartbeat. As long as a person is alive, there will be a medical specialty that will try to make his existence as long and enjoyable as possible.