Don’t be confused when you go to the doctor! What diseases does the endocrinology department treat? Many people don’t know

When it comes to what diseases the endocrinology department can treat, you may think that the endocrinology department only treats diabetes, and at most endocrine disorders? Many people also mistakenly think that they come to the urology department for treatment. In fact, the endocrinology department, whose full name is the endocrine and metabolic disease department, mainly treats two major types of diseases: endocrine diseases and metabolic diseases .

The symptoms of these diseases are very complex, mainly related to abnormal hormone levels, and may affect many parts of the body. So what diseases does the endocrinology department treat? Today, let's go to the Yiyang Central Hospital for medical treatment and get a simple understanding of "endocrinology".

1. Diabetes

Diabetes is the most common and frequently occurring disease in the endocrinology department. In addition to newly discovered diabetes and diabetics with poor blood sugar control, it also includes acute and chronic complications of diabetes, such as diabetic ketoacidosis, hyperosmolar coma, hypoglycemia, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases, kidney disease, neuropathy, eye disease, diabetic foot, and infections in various parts of the body.

2. Thyroid disease

Thyroid disease is also an important diagnosis and treatment area of ​​the endocrinology department, such as hyperthyroidism, hypothyroidism, thyroiditis, thyroid enlargement and nodules, thyroid tumors, and thyroid disease during pregnancy. If you or your family or friends have neck swelling, neck pain, heat intolerance, fatigue, hyperphagia, weight loss, palpitations, hand tremors, exophthalmos, bad temper, emotional instability, or fear of cold, chills, poor appetite, swollen hands and feet, less talkativeness, fatigue, slow reaction, etc., you need to consider thyroid disease.

3. Bone metabolic diseases

Bone metabolic diseases such as osteoporosis, hyperparathyroidism, hypoparathyroidism, and unexplained bone pain, fractures, and bone deformities also fall within the diagnosis and treatment scope of the endocrinology department. Common diseases such as osteoporosis cannot be cured by simply supplementing calcium or basking in the sun or drinking bone soup. Endocrinologists are required to identify the causes of osteoporosis and develop standardized anti-osteoporosis treatment plans based on the treatment of the primary disease.

4. Obesity and weight loss

Obesity itself is a common disease that can cause many harms. In addition to the common primary obesity that requires standardized treatment, there is also secondary obesity caused by other diseases, such as Cushing's syndrome, polycystic ovary syndrome, hypothyroidism, hypogonadism, etc., which require careful investigation and identification by endocrinologists in order to develop a reasonable and correct treatment plan. The cause of weight loss is not simple either, and may be related to diseases such as diabetes and hyperthyroidism.

5. Hypothalamic pituitary disease

This type of disease is relatively rare, and its clinical manifestations are complex and varied, such as polyuria, polydipsia, headache, abnormally tall or short stature, enlarged and deformed face, hands and feet, visual impairment, visual field defect, amenorrhea, etc. It includes pituitary tumors, gigantism, acromegaly, dwarfism, hypopituitarism, diabetes insipidus, hypothalamic dysfunction, etc. Some of these diseases belong to the category of rare diseases.

6. Adrenal gland disease

Adrenal diseases include hyperadrenocortical hyperfunction, hypoadrenocortical hyperfunction, adrenal tumors, etc. Common diseases include primary aldosteronism, hypercortisolism, pheochromocytoma, etc. Clinical manifestations include central obesity, moon face, purple abdominal striae, refractory hypertension, hypokalemia, skin pigmentation, abnormal development of external genitalia, etc. The most common manifestation is refractory intractable hypertension, which is related to many adrenal diseases.

7. Gonadal diseases

Gonadal diseases involve female amenorrhea, menstrual disorders, male/female menopausal status, hypoplasia of gonads and secondary sexual characteristics, precocious puberty, true and false hermaphroditism, hirsutism, infertility, sexual dysfunction, etc.

8. Other metabolic diseases

Some metabolic diseases are related to purine metabolism disorders and lipid metabolism disorders, which require professional guidance and treatment from endocrinologists. For example, hyperuricemia may lead to gout and kidney stones, while hyperlipidemia is a risk factor for diseases such as stroke, coronary heart disease, and pancreatitis.

9. Abnormal electrolyte imbalance

Repeated low potassium, low sodium, low calcium, high calcium, low phosphorus, high phosphorus, unexplained stones and fractures, multiple calcifications, etc. may be caused by parathyroid and adrenal diseases.

10. Growth and development disorders in children

Dwarfism, deformity, precocious puberty, sexual immaturity, obesity, amenorrhea, intellectual disability, etc.

Special reminder: For patients with endocrine diseases, they should pay attention to a balanced diet, moderate exercise, and regularly monitor blood sugar, blood pressure and other indicators. Anyone who has undergone endocrine gland surgery or radiotherapy, such as pituitary, thyroid, adrenal gland, ovary, testicle surgery, thyroid radioiodine treatment, etc., needs to be followed up in the endocrine clinic for a long time to monitor hormone levels and adjust drug dosages.

References

Internal Medicine 9th Edition, Advanced Course in Endocrinology 1st Edition

Hunan Medical Chat Special Author: Zhou Min and Peng Ke from Yiyang Central Hospital

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(Edited by Wx)