Questions about doctors and their knowledge of the human body?

Question

Do you believe doctors like endocronologist, really know the human body well, like how the hormones and stuff work. Like if they were to say a topical steroid cream wouldn't affect you would you believe them? They say there a 100% sure its okay because it is a week potency, but do you think there is any chance that our knowledge about the human body is not great enough yet, and that it may truely affect us?

Answer 1

As a physician, I can tell you that there are lots of things that we do not know. I would never tell a patient that I am 100 percent sure of anything. You as a patient have to weigh any risk and benefit.  If, for example, your doctor recommends that you use a low potency steroid cream for a rash that is driving you nuts from itching, you really have only three choices:

1. Assume the risk, which is quite tiny by the way, and use the cream and get some relief.

2. Seek another treatment, which will carry with it another risk.

3. Continue to itch.

Pick your poison, so to speak! There is no such thing as a risk free treatment, including natural remedies, or even doing nothing.

Answer 2

You don't get to be an endocrinologist without learning how hormones work.  They live and breathe that stuff.

Most of the time, physicians have to translate what they know into information that the average guy or gal can understand.  

We are constantly learning new things about how different things affect us.  Nothing is risk-free.

Getting in the car to visit your endocrinologist carries far more risk than most topical creams, but you don't think about THAT, do you?  Everything affects us in some way.

Medication decisions are always made by looking at the risks vs the benefits.  In the case of a low potency steroid cream, the potential benefits probably far outweigh the risks.

(Just like the benefits of driving to the doctor's office outweigh the risk of crashing your car)