Urology is a medical and surgical specialty dealing with the well-being and health problems related to the urinary system of men, women and children, as well as the male sex organs and glands associated with the genitourinary system, like the adrenal and parathyroid glands. This comprises a rather well-defined area of the human body, although there is some overlap between different medical specialties.
Urologists Concern Themselves With:
Disorders of the urinary outlet of the kidney, such as obstructions of the ureter or stones, but also benign or malignant tumors and inborn diseases. Kidney transplants are performed by specialized surgical teams usually including urologists.
Disorders of the urinary bladder, like stones, tumors and inborn disorders. Incontinence in both women and men.
Disorders of the urethra and prostate, like tumors, obstructions and infections.
Disorders of the penis, like impotence, tumors and inborn disorders.
Disorders of the testicle and connected structures, like infections and tumors, but also sterilization. Male infertility also belongs to the domain of the urologist.
Urology has always had its own place within the medical profession. For centuries there has been a distinction between the so-called "barber surgeons" for the cutting part of medicine, and the learned, university-educated, medical doctors, who used herbs and diets. Urologists come forth from the 'stonecutters', who used to travel around medieval Europe practicing their skills at fairs, alongside the predecessors of dentists and cured their patients (mostly male) of their bladder stones. This role was described in the Hippocratic Oath.
In the past century, urology has shown tremendous development, partly because of the discovery of X-rays and other diagnostic methods (making urinary stones and other conditions of the genitourinary system visible) and because of the development of very small lenses, making it possible to inspect the bladder, prostate and even the kidneys. These discoveries and the development of anesthesia made it possible to perform more complicated operations with greater precision and knowledge utilizing the natural bodily passages.
What is Urology?