Gastroenterology

Gastroenterology (MeSH heading [http://www.nlm.nih.gov/cgi/mesh/2007/MB_cgi?mode=&term=gastroenterology] ) is the branch of medicine whereby the digestive system and its disorders are studied. Etymologically, the name is a combination of three Ancient Greek words "gastros" (stomach), "enteron" (intestine), and "logos" (reason).

Diseases affecting the gastrointestinal tract, which includes the organs from mouth to anus, along the alimentary canal, are the focus of this specialty. Physicians practicing in this field of medicine are called gastroenterologists. Important advances have been made in the last fifty years, contributing to rapid expansion of its scope.

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

History

Citing from Egyptian papyri, Nunn identified significant knowledge of gastrointestinal diseases among practising physicians during the periods of the pharaohs. Irynakhty, of the tenth dynasty, c. 2125 B.C., was a court physician specialising in gastroenterology and proctology. [Nunn JF. Ancient Egyptian Medicine. 2002. ISBN 0-80613-504-2.]

Among ancient Greeks, Hippocrates attributed digestion to concoction. Galen's concept of the stomach having four "faculties" was widely accepted up to modernity in the eighteenth century.

Eighteenth century:
* Italian Lazzaro Spallanzani (1729–99) was among early physicians to disregard Galen's theories, and in 1780 he gave experimental proof on the action of gastric juice on foodstuffs.
* In 1767, German Johann von Zimmermann wrote an important work on dysentery.
* In 1777, Maximilian Stoll of Vienna described cancer of the gallbladder. [Edgardo Rivera, MDJames L. Abbruzzese, MD; Pancreatic, Hepatic, and Biliary Carcinomas, MEDICAL ONCOLOGY: A COMPREHENSIVE REVIEW [http://www.cancernetwork.com/textbook/morev16.htm/] ] [DeStoll M: Rationis Mendendi, in Nosocomio Practico vendobonensi.Part 1 LugduniBatavarum, Haak et Socios et A et J Honkoop 1788, OCLC: 23625746]

Nineteenth century:
* In 1805, Philip Bozzini made the first attempt to observe inside the living human body using a tube he named "Lichtleiter" (light guiding instrument) to examine the urinary tract, the rectum, and the pharynx. This is the earliest description of endoscopy. [Gilger, Mark A. MD,Gastroenterologic endoscopy in children: past, present, and future. Gastroenterology and nutritionCurrent Opinion in Pediatrics. 13(5):429-434, October 2001.] [ [http://www.olympus-global.com/en/corc/history/endo/ The Origin of Endoscopes, Olympus history] ]
* Charles Emile Troisier described enlargement of lymph nodes in abdominal cancer. [Anton Sebastian,A Dictionary of the History of Medicine, ISBN 1850700214 ]
* In 1868, Adolf Kussmaul, a well-known German physician, developed the gastroscope. He perfected the technique on a sword swallower.
* In 1871, at the society of physicians in Vienna, Carl Stoerk demonstrated an esophagoscope made of two telescopic metal tubes, initially devised by Waldenburg in 1870.
* In 1876, Karl Wilhelm von Kupffer described the properties of some liver cells now called Kupffer cell.
* In 1884, Kronecker and Meltzern studied oesophageal manometry in humans.

Twentieth century:
* Rudolph Schindler described many important diseases involving the human digestive system during World War I in his illustrated textbook and is portrayed by some as the "father of gastroscopy". He and Georg Wolf developed a semiflexible gastroscope in 1932.
* In 1932, Burrill Bernard Crohn described Crohn's disease.
* In 1957, Basil Hirschowitz introduced the first prototype of a fibreoptic gastroscope.

Twenty-first century:
* In 2005, Barry Marshall and Robin Warren of Australia were awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discovery of "Helicobacter pylori" (1982/1983) and its role in peptic ulcer disease. James Leavitt assisted in their research, but the Nobel Prize is not awarded posthumously so he was not included in the award.

Disease classification

Gastroenterological societies

* American College of Gastroenterology
* American Gastroenterological Association
* American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy
* British Society of Gastroenterology

References

External links

* [http://www.virtualgastrocentre.com/ Virtual Gastro Centre]
* [http://www.gastrohep.com/ GastroHep.com - Gastrohep]
* [http://www.daveproject.org/ The Digital Atlas of Video Education - Gastroenterology]