What is "gastroenterology"

1904, from gastro- + enterology.\nRelated: Gastroenterologist.

n. The study of the digestive system, from mouth to anus. May also include the study of accessory organs: pancreas, liver, gallbladder and bile ducts.

n. the branch of medicine that studies the gastrointestinal tract and its diseases

Gastroenterology ( MeSH heading) is the branch of medicine focused on the digestive system and its disorders.

Diseases affecting the gastrointestinal tract, which include the organs from mouth to anus, along the alimentary canal, are the focus of this speciality. Physicians practicing in this field are called gastroenterologists. They have usually completed about eight years of pre-medical and medical education, a year-long internship (if this is not a part of the residency), three years of an internal medicine residency, and two to three years in the gastroenterology fellowship. Some gastroenterology trainees will complete a "fourth-year" (although this is often their seventh year of graduate medical education) in transplant hepatology, advanced endoscopy, inflammatory bowel disease, motility or other topics.

Hepatology, or hepatobiliary medicine, encompasses the study of the liver, pancreas, and biliary tree, and is traditionally considered a sub-specialty.

Gastroenterology is the official medical journal of the American Gastroenterological Association. Its first issue was published in 1943. It is currently published by Elsevier. According to the Journal Citation Reports, the journal has a 2014 impact factor of 16.716, ranking it first out of 76 journals in the category "Gasteroenterology & Hepatology".