General Surgery

General surgery is a discipline that requires knowledge of and familiarity with a broad spectrum of diseases that may require surgical treatment. By necessity, the breadth and depth of this knowledge will vary by disease category. In most areas, the surgeon will be expected to be competent in diagnosing and treating the full spectrum of disease. However, there are some types of disease in which comprehensive knowledge and experience is not generally gained in the course of a standard surgical residency. In these areas, the surgeon will be able to recognize and treat a select group of conditions within a disease category.

The following disciplines have training programs related to, but separate from, general surgery. As the primary surgical practitioner in many circumstances, the certified general surgeon is required to be familiar with diseases and operative techniques in these areas. The certified general surgeon will have experience during training that will allow for diagnosis and management of a select group of conditions in these areas. However, comprehensive knowledge and management of conditions in these areas generally requires additional training.