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 14,745 practicing gastroenterologists. Broken out by state, gastroenterology doctor density in Alabama is 193, in Alaska is 13, in Arizona is 283, in Arkansas is 97, in California is 1,549, in Colorado is 203, in Connecticut is 296, in Delaware is 48, in District of Columbia is 124, in Florida is 1,000, in Georgia is 373, in Hawaii is 55, in Idaho is 43, in Illinois is 625, in Indiana is 254, in Iowa is 115, in Kansas is 109, in Kentucky is 166, in Louisiana is 198, in Maine is 54, in Maryland is 396, in Massachusetts is 547, in Michigan is 402, in Minnesota is 291, in Mississippi is 111, in Missouri is 313, in Montana is 30, in Nebraska is 67, in Nevada is 68, in New Hampshire is 81, in New Jersey is 595, in New Mexico is 74, in New York is 1,464, in North Carolina is 419, in North Dakota is 20, in Ohio is 531, in Oklahoma is 122, in Oregon is 160, in Pennsylvania is 763, in Rhode Island is 86, in South Carolina is 189, in South Dakota is 30, in Tennessee is 292, in Texas is 877, in Utah is 86, in Vermont is 26, in Virginia is 368, in Washington is 317, in West Virginia is 66, in Wisconsin is 260, and in Wyoming is 12.