Urology

Urology (from Greek οὖρον - oûron, "urine" and -λογία, -logia "study of") is the medical and surgical specialty that focuses on the urinary tracts of males and females, and on the reproductive system of males. Medical professionals specializing in the field of urology are called urologists and are trained to diagnose, treat, and manage patients with urological disorders. The organs covered by urology include the kidneys, adrenal glands, ureters, urinary bladder, urethra, and the male reproductive organs (testes, epididymis, vas deferens, seminal vesicles, prostate and penis). Urology is one of the most competitive specialties to enter for physicians.

The urinary and reproductive tracts are closely linked, and disorders of one often affect the other, so a major part of the conditions managed in urology fall in the area of genitourinary disorders. Urology combines management of medical (i.e., non-surgical) problems such as urinary tract infections and benign prostatic hyperplasia, as well as surgical problems such as the surgical management of cancers, the correction of congenital abnormalities, and correcting stress incontinence. Urology is closely related to, and in some cases overlaps with, the medical fields of oncology, nephrology, gynecology, andrology, pediatric surgery, gastroenterology, and endocrinology.