Gastroenterology deals with the gastrointestinal tract and associated systems like the hepatobiliary system, and forms an important and integral part of the practice of medicine. It is imperative for a medical student to be well acquainted with the diseases of the gastrointestinal system primarily because this system practically forms the basis of life as it links the internal world of the body to the external world through food, water, drugs, etc. that are taken in from the external world and assimilated and utilized to maintain every single cell of the internal world.