Internal medicine

1. What is the task of internal medicine?Internal medicine is perhaps the widest field of medical science. It consists of innumerable parts, for which, physicians are specialized followed by their specialist examinations. Internal medicine deals with the diseases of the heart (cardiology), the digestive system (gastroenterology) and the kidneys (nephrology). Besides this, lesions of other organs also belong here. There are morbidities referring to the whole organism like high blood pressure (hypertension) or diabetes (diabetes mellitus). Their treatment is also the task of internal medicine. Classic, so called conservative medical therapy is built rather on treatment with medicaments. However, progress in medical science brings about focusing on instrumental interventions. Such interventions are coronary artery dilatations or examination performed with endoscope.

2. How does a medical examination take place?

It is possible to register to the examinations and treatments preliminarily at the receptions desk of our clinic personally, by phone or e-mail. At first personal visit, the patient is registered at the receptions desk and then he or she is directed to the specialist by our colleagues.

The first step of medical examination is to put down the detailed history also known as anamnesis. The physician asks about the diseases and their recurrences having been found in the family with respect to the inner organs. (“megpróbálja” – nagybetűre javítani a magyar szövegben!) He tries to survey frequencies of cardiovascular, metabolic, respiratory and genetic diseases to see liability of the patient to different diseases. As a part of the anamnesis, the physician asks about diseases and their complications having been occurred in the course of the patient’s life; about his or her allergies, if any, and about his or her harmful habits.

The anamnesis is followed by the physical examination: the physician evaluates the state and development of the body. During this evaluation, the specialist examines the patient with a phonendoscope in detail; he or she listens to cardiac and respiratory sounds. Besides the examination of the abdomen and the peripheral pulses, internal examination includes several other evaluations like measuring blood pressure. Possibly found deviations provide important information for the experienced examiner.

Depending on the results of the examinations, the physician can prescribe medicaments, but if it is necessary, he or she can direct the patient to take part in other examinations like laboratory or ECG exams.

Payment is done at the receptions desk after the examinations or consultation.

3. With what kinds of complaints should we call upon an internist?

Medical examinations and treatments are recommended in cases when the patient’s symptoms are questionable and he or she does not know to whom to call upon. The main power of internal medicine is that it integrates several medical fields on prevention, healing and rehabilitation levels. At present, internal medicine includes several specialized disciplines like cardiology, endocrinology, gastroenterology and diabetology. Accordingly, medical examinations and treatments promise recovery for example for those suffering from cardiovascular problems, from complaints in connection with the endocrine glands, gastrointestinal illnesses or diabetes.