What is Obstetrics and Gynecology?
Although men and women face some similar types of health issues, diseases and challenges, women encounter some different types of health issues that men don’t have. As for example, women have unique hormone-regulated cycles and processes, such as menstruation and menopause, and reproductive issues including fertility and birth control, especially women of child-bearing age. Pregnant women need special care under doctors before and after birth of baby. Some women also face some other specific diseases such as, cancers of the breast and pelvic organs.
What is OB/GYN
The OB/GYN is the abbreviated form and means obstetrician gynecologist. They are medical practitioners/doctors who have expertise in two disciplines: obstetrics and gynecology.
What is Gynecology?
Gynecology is a subspeciality of medicine that takes care of a woman’s reproductive organs and health.
What is Obstetrics?
Obstetrics is the subspeciality of medicine that deals the treatment of the pregnant women, including the delivery of babies.
Boundary of Obstetrician and Gynecologist
The expertise and job boundary of obstetrician and gynecologist are already discussed above. Sometimes, they have dual expertise and knowledge in both
obstetrics and gynecology. However, some obstetrician gynecologists acquire more special expertise and knowledge in obstetrics, and mostly they treat the women with pregnancy and related issues. Others specialize in gynecology, focusing their practice on the needs of women who are not pregnant. But most obstetrician gynecologists are generalists, and they treat the general women’s health and the pregnant mothers. According to the American College of Surgeons, about 90 percent of obstetrician gynecologists are generalists.
Duties and medical services of an OB/GYN
An obstetrician gynecologist provides following women’s health services
- Reproductive organs.
- Breasts and the organs of the pelvis, such as the vagina, uterus, ovaries, and fallopian tubes.
- Medical advice to a young woman begins around the age of 13 to 15, after the onset of menstruation and before first sexual intercourse.
- Menopause (the process that marks the end of menstruation) and beyond.
- Unusual or severe cramping; changes in menstruation; pain during sex; or frequent, involuntary, or painful urination.
- A sexually transmitted infection (STI), such as gonorrhea, chlamydia, or syphilis.
- A review of the patient’s medical history and questions about general health.
- Conducting a general physical examination, including an examination of the breasts and pelvis. During a pelvic exam, a doctor may collect cells from the cervix to test for cervical cancer (called a pap smear) and human papillomavirus (HPV).
- Treating a range of women’s health problems using a combination of medication, therapy, and surgery.
- They may treat such urinary issues as urinary tract infections and incontinence.
- They may also treat abnormal bleeding, genital itching, and hormone disorders.
- Providing a range of preventive care services, including birth control and immunizations.
- Pregnancy or a miscarriage.
- Regular check-up throughout pregnancy.
- Providing help with pregnancy planning, prenatal care, and advice on diet.
- Order or conduct ultrasound tests to assess a fetus’s health and development.
- Overseeing the birthing process.
- Providing postpartum care (care after birth) for the mother.
- Performing a variety of surgical procedures such as, a cesarean section or use a range of other techniques to facilitate childbirth.
- Conducting a hysterectomy (removal of the uterus), removing growth, such as ovarian cysts and uterine fibroids, or repairing pelvic organ injuries.
- Performing a number of procedures related to fertility, including in vitro fertilization and sterilization.
A few subspecialties of obstetrician gynecologists:
Gynecologic oncology involves the treatment of cancers of the reproductive organs.
Maternal-fetal medicine deals with the care of high-risk pregnancies.
Female pelvic medicine and reconstruction involves the treatment of problems of the pelvic organs, including urinary incontinence and overactive bladder.
Reproductive endocrinology concerns the treatment of infertility and of such problems as endometriosis.