Internal medicine is a medical specialty in which doctors use scientific knowledge and clinical expertise to diagnose and treat adults with a wide range of health problems.
Who is an Internist?
An internist is a medical doctor who specializes in internal medicine. This discipline of medicine deals with a wide range of conditions that affect the body's organs. A key difference from family practitioners is internist only treat adults.
Care Provided by Internal Medicine
Internists provide treatment for:
- Acute health conditions such as flu, strep throat, common cold, and pneumonia
- Arthritis and rheumatic conditions
- Blood disorders such as anemia and hemophilia
- Cardiovascular conditions such as hypertension, heart failure, and coronary artery disease
- Respiratory disorders such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and lung cancer
- Digestive problems such as gastritis, inflammatory bowel disease, and gastric ulcers.
- Immunologic disorders such as asthma and allergies
- Infectious diseases such as AIDS, hepatitis, and tuberculosis
- Thyroid disorders
- Neurologic conditions such as migraines and multiple sclerosis
- Mental health disorders
Subspecialties of Internal Medicine
Some of the subspecialties of internal medicine include:
- Endocrinology
- Rheumatology
- Infectious diseases
- Otorhinolaryngology
- Gastroenterology
- Nephrology
- Neurology
- Psychiatry
- Dermatology
- Ophthalmology
- Gynecology
- Pulmonary diseases
- Cardiovascular diseases
- Critical care medicine
- Hematology
- Oncology
- Non-surgical orthopedics
- Palliative medicine
- Sleep medicine
- Geriatrics
- Rehabilitation medicine
Internal Medicine Diagnostic Tests
Diagnostic tests performed by internists include:
- Screening tests for blood pressure, cholesterol, colorectal cancer, and gynecologic cancer
- Mammogram
- Rhinoscopy
- Cardiac stress testing
- Echocardiograms
- Biopsy
- Dynamic hormone testing
- Bone density testing
- Endoscopic ultrasound
- Upper and lower endoscopy
Internal Medicine Procedures
The procedures performed by an internist include:
- Laceration repair
- Simple fracture care
- Removal of foreign bodies from the eyes or skin
- Pain management injections
- Adult vaccinations
- Arterial puncture to analyze blood gasses
- Endotracheal intubation
- Flexible sigmoidoscopy
- Intravenous (IV) line insertion
- Nasogastric (NG) tube placement
- Urinary catheters placement
- Coronary catheterization
- Angioplasty
- Placement of Implantable defibrillators
- Placement of intra-aortic and intra-ventricular devices
- Intubation and ventilator management
- Chest tube thoracostomy
- Tracheostomy placement
- Stem cell transplant
- Plasmapheresis
- Stent insertion
Other Primary Care / Internal Medicine Services