What Is Medicine?
Medicine is the art and science of treating disease through surgery, therapies, medications and other remedies. It is a vast field that includes many different specialties, each of which focus on particular parts of the body or specific diseases or conditions. Physicians are trained in internal medicine (which covers a broad range of diseases and disorders), which may be subdivided into several subspecialties such as cardiology, gastroenterology, endocrinology, gynecology, infectious disease, nephrology, neurology, pulmonology, radiology, rheumatology, sports medicine, and urology.
Medical anthropology is the study of the way culture and society are organized around health, illness and medicine. Historically, prehistoric medicine incorporated plant and animal parts (herbalism), spiritual systems such as animism and the Greek “four humours”, and other traditions including divination, magic and alchemy.
Modern scientific biomedical research replaced prehistoric beliefs with a systematic, testable approach to health and disease, and the modern discipline of medicine was born. In the early 1700s, Edward Jenner developed the first vaccine for smallpox, and in the 1800s Robert Koch discovered bacteria and began antibiotics.
Today, modern medicine is based on a variety of clinical sciences, such as epidemiology and public health, which deal with the diagnosis, prevention, control and surveillance of disease in populations; biomedical engineering, which involves applying engineering principles to medical problems; and biology, which studies the structure and function of living organisms. Medicine is also influenced by sociology, psychology and philosophy.
During a medical consultation, the patient typically presents with what is called their chief complaint or their symptom. The healthcare provider gathers a detailed medical history and performs a physical examination of the patient. The patient is asked about their current symptoms, past illnesses and treatments, family medical history, as well as lifestyle habits such as diet and exercise. A blood sample and other diagnostic tests are often collected at this point.
The information gathered during the consultation is used to make a differential diagnosis, which is a list of possible causes of the patient’s illness. The medical team then uses the data to decide on a treatment plan, which may involve medicines, surgical procedures, lifestyle interventions or other modalities of care. The final decision is based on the most likely cause of the symptoms in light of the patient’s general health, age, gender, and family medical history. A treatment plan is usually documented in a patient’s medical record. The patient’s progress is monitored and modified at subsequent appointments. The medical process is also influenced by health care systems, which establish legal, credentialing and funding frameworks for the practice of medicine. These vary widely across the world, with some countries having universal healthcare and others not. Medical research is ongoing to improve diagnostic techniques, treatments and the understanding of health and disease. The field of genetics has had an enormous influence on medicine, as the causative genes for many monogenic diseases have been identified. With advances in computing and imaging, medical technology has expanded rapidly. It is now possible for a physician to perform virtual consultations with patients.
Medicine is the art and science of treating disease through surgery, therapies, medications and other remedies. It is a vast field that includes many different specialties, each of which focus on particular parts of the body or specific diseases or conditions. Physicians are trained in internal medicine (which covers a broad range of diseases and disorders), which may be subdivided into several subspecialties such as cardiology, gastroenterology, endocrinology, gynecology, infectious disease, nephrology, neurology, pulmonology, radiology, rheumatology, sports medicine, and urology. Medical anthropology is the study of the way culture and society are organized around health, illness and medicine. Historically, prehistoric medicine incorporated plant and animal parts (herbalism), spiritual systems such as animism and the Greek “four humours”, and other traditions including divination, magic and alchemy. Modern scientific biomedical research replaced prehistoric beliefs with a systematic, testable approach to health and disease, and the modern discipline of medicine was born. In the early 1700s, Edward Jenner developed the first vaccine for smallpox, and in the 1800s Robert Koch discovered bacteria and began antibiotics. Today, modern medicine is based on a variety of clinical sciences, such as epidemiology and public health, which deal with the diagnosis, prevention, control and surveillance of disease in populations; biomedical engineering, which involves applying engineering principles to medical problems; and biology, which studies the structure and function of living organisms. Medicine is also influenced by sociology, psychology and philosophy. During a medical consultation, the patient typically presents with what is called their chief complaint or their symptom. The healthcare provider gathers a detailed medical history and performs a physical examination of the patient. The patient is asked about their current symptoms, past illnesses and treatments, family medical history, as well as lifestyle habits such as diet and exercise. A blood sample and other diagnostic tests are often collected at this point. The information gathered during the consultation is used to make a differential diagnosis, which is a list of possible causes of the patient’s illness. The medical team then uses the data to decide on a treatment plan, which may involve medicines, surgical procedures, lifestyle interventions or other modalities of care. The final decision is based on the most likely cause of the symptoms in light of the patient’s general health, age, gender, and family medical history. A treatment plan is usually documented in a patient’s medical record. The patient’s progress is monitored and modified at subsequent appointments. The medical process is also influenced by health care systems, which establish legal, credentialing and funding frameworks for the practice of medicine. These vary widely across the world, with some countries having universal healthcare and others not. Medical research is ongoing to improve diagnostic techniques, treatments and the understanding of health and disease. The field of genetics has had an enormous influence on medicine, as the causative genes for many monogenic diseases have been identified. With advances in computing and imaging, medical technology has expanded rapidly. It is now possible for a physician to perform virtual consultations with patients.