Who is a GI surgeon?

Surgical gastroenterologists or GI surgeons are the physicians who have extensive training in surgically treating of conditions that affect the large intestine, small intestine, stomach, esophagus, and biliary system which is made up of liver, pancreas, gallbladder, bile ducts.

What does a GI Surgeon do?

Gastrointestinal surgery is divided into two parts: Upper gastrointestinal surgeries and lower gastrointestinal surgeries. The GI surgeon surgically treats the diseases of the esophagus, stomach, small bowel, pancreas, liver, gall bladder, colon and surgery of the small intestine.   

What diseases do GI surgeons treat?

A surgical gastroenterologist treats many conditions affecting the gut, such as achalasia, Barrett's esophagus, benign and malignant diseases of the biliary tract, benign and malignant diseases of the pancreas, gastrointestinal tumors, hiatal hernia, infectious diseases of the colon and rectum, inflammatory bowel disease and continent reconstruction, peptic ulcer disease, primary and metastatic liver tumors, primary neoplasms of the stomach, small bowel, colon, and rectum, radiation bowel injury and reflux esophagitis (or GERD) and its complications.

What surgeries do GI surgeons perform?

• GI surgeons perform procedures such as:
• Abdominal surgery
• Adrenalectomy
• Breast biopsy
• Colon resection
• Laparoscopic Adrenalectomy
• Laparoscopic Appendectomy and Open Appendectomy
• Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy
• Laparoscopic Colon Surgery
• Laparoscopic Nephrectomy
• Laparoscopic Nissen Fundoplication
• Laparoscopic Pancreatic Surgery
• Laparoscopic Splenectomy
• Multidisciplinary Treatment Approach
• Nissen fundoplication
• Roux en-Y
• Whipple

What separates a GI surgeon from a general surgeon?

A general surgeon practices broad surgical specialty comprising parotid gland, thyroid, breast, hernia, urinary tract, digestive tract, and trauma surgeries. He or she carries out a range of secondary level surgeries in these fields and knows and practices surgeries from several fields. A gastrointestinal surgeon is also called a GI surgeon or surgical gastroenterologist. His or her specialization focuses on everything that is involved with the digestive tract. Some of the complex gastrointestinal surgeries associated with spleen, liver, pancreas, and intestines including rectum are done by these experts.