Gastroenterology is the study of the gastrointestinal (GI) tract of the body. A gastroenterologist diagnoses and treats diseases of the digestive organs, including the stomach, esophagus, intestines, pancreas, liver and gallbladder. This specialist treats conditions such as abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting, ulcers, diarrhea, cancer in the GI tract, and jaundice. A gastroenterologist also performs complex diagnostic procedures, including the use of endoscopes to see and treat internal organs.

Physicians in this specialty treat patients suffering from numerous diseases and illnesses, but some of the most common are hemorrhoids, hiatal hernia, digestive disorders, heartburn, rectal bleeding, ulcer, ostomy care, polyps, colon cancer, crohn's disease, diarrhea, abdominal pain, constipation, acid reflux, bowel diseases, cystic fibrosis, ulcerative colitis, nausea, appendicitis, and colitis.

Once properly diagnosed, practitioners can perform numerous procedures on patients including gerd services, abdominal surgery, appendectomy, cholecystectomy, laparoscopy, liver transplantation, and cholecystography.

To diagnose patients with possible illnesses and diseases, specialists will often perform one of many tests including endoscopy, colonoscopy, barium enema, liver biopsy, sigmoidoscopy, barium swallow, abdominal ultrasound, esophagogastroduodenoscopy (egd), gallbladder scan, upper gastrointestinal series, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, radiographic x-ray, proctoscopy, pancreas scan, abdominal angiogram, anoscopy, liver scan, and abdominal x-rays.

Doctor density varies by specialty and location. The United States has 15,006 practicing gastroenterologists. Broken out by state, gastroenterology doctor density in Alabama is 195, in Alaska is 10, in Arizona is 290, in Arkansas is 98, in California is 1,559, in Colorado is 217, in Connecticut is 307, in Delaware is 51, in District of Columbia is 113, in Florida is 1,029, in Georgia is 368, in Hawaii is 54, in Idaho is 47, in Illinois is 674, in Indiana is 260, in Iowa is 127, in Kansas is 114, in Kentucky is 167, in Louisiana is 200, in Maine is 52, in Maryland is 402, in Massachusetts is 551, in Michigan is 400, in Minnesota is 305, in Mississippi is 120, in Missouri is 315, in Montana is 31, in Nebraska is 67, in Nevada is 76, in New Hampshire is 75, in New Jersey is 629, in New Mexico is 92, in New York is 1,462, in North Carolina is 406, in North Dakota is 23, in Ohio is 530, in Oklahoma is 115, in Oregon is 164, in Pennsylvania is 789, in Rhode Island is 82, in South Carolina is 201, in South Dakota is 29, in Tennessee is 296, in Texas is 879, in Utah is 87, in Vermont is 20, in Virginia is 383, in Washington is 315, in West Virginia is 74, in Wisconsin is 280, and in Wyoming is 9.