Dr. Toshi Is In! "neurologist" or "urologist." Can you tell me what they are?

Dear Dr. Toshi,

 I was told that I'd be referred to a specialist, but I didn't catch if the doctor said, "neurologist" or "urologist." Can you tell me what they are?

I get this question quite often because there are so many specialists! So, today, I'd like to give you some information about doctors who specialize.

In my mind, there are two big categories when it comes to categories of physicians: non-surgical and surgical. They're all physicians, but doctors who perform surgery are often called surgeons. Surgeons do major operations in operating rooms. There are general surgeons, orthopedic surgeons, cardiothoracic surgeons, neurosurgeons, plastic surgeons, trauma surgeons, and many others with the word "surgeon" in their title. However, there are also some surgeons who perform surgery and are considered surgeons but don't have the word "surgeon" in their titles, such as OB/GYN doctors (doctors who specialize in obstetrics and gynecology), urologists, and Ear Nose and Throat (ENT) doctors, for instance.

Doctors who don't do surgery include Primary Care Physicians (PCPs), such as internal medicine doctors (adult medicine), pediatricians (children's doctors), and family physicians (who have the broadest scope of practice, from prenatal care and obstetrics to babies and the elderly, and everything in between). These doctors do some minor surgical procedures, but usually in the clinic setting rather than in the operating room. Family medicine doctors used to get some surgical training in the past, such as C-sections, but now it's not as common as before.

As for the question above, "neurology" and "urology" sound very similar, so it's easy to get confused. Neurology is the specialty of medicine that involves the nerves. Urology is the specialty that deals with the urinary system, so it's something related to your urination. Neurologist are doctors who are specially trained in the nervous system, including the brain. However, when people need surgery for the brain, a neurosurgeon does that. Neurologists don't perform surgery. They treat patients with medications and other non-surgical methods.

Urologists are surgeons who specialize in medical problems with the genitals and urinary systems. A friend of mine chose to become a urologist because he loved being able to do both extensive medical management and surgical management.

The following are some other specialties:

Dermatologists: Doctors who specialize in problems with the skin.

Ophthalmologists: Eye doctors. Ophthalmologists are doctors who go through medical school and residency and perform eye surgery, but optometrists are not medical doctors; they go through different training that specializes in the eyes, and they don't do surgery.

Radiologists: Doctors who specialize in interpreting medical images such as X-rays, CT scans, MRIs, and ultrasound imaging. They also do some procedures. Interventional radiologists are radiologists who go through a lot more training and do many complicated procedures.

Podiatrists: Doctors who specialize in the foot, ankle, and related structures of the leg. Podiatrists are surgeons, and they have a Doctor of Podiatric Medicine (DPM) degree rather than an MD or DO degree.

Internal medicine and pediatrics have many subspecialties, e.g., these are doctors of internal medicine or pediatrics who have years of extra training. Examples include cardiologists (who specialize in the heart), pulmonologists (who specialize in the lungs), nephrologists (who specialize in the kidneys), gastroenterologists (who specialize in the digestive system, including the stomach, liver, intestines and other gastrointestinal organs), endocrinologists (who specialize in medicine related to hormones, such as thyroid disease and diabetes), rheumatologists (who specialize in rheumatoid arthritis and other diseases of the joints, muscles, and bones), hematologists (who specialize in medicine related to the blood), and oncologists (who specialize in cancer). There are also other specialties with extra training, such as geriatricians, who specialize in medicine for elderly people.

I mentioned a lot of specialties today, but please note that these aren't all of them! There are many others! So, if you have questions, you can always ask your medical provider.

Dr. Toshiko ("Toshi") Luckow, MD, is a Family Physician at the West River Health Services Hospital and Clinics.