Concept in Definition ABC

The physiology It is the science in charge of describing the way in which the various organs and systems of living beings function, as well as the tissues that compose them. It constitutes one of the fundamental pillars of the medical sciences.

This word has its origin in the Greek language, physis: nature Y logos: studio.

The study of physiology makes it possible to describe the various processes that take place under normal conditions in healthy tissues. The abnormal functioning or the mechanisms that lead to or accompany diseases correspond to another science, the pathophysiology.

Basis of physiology

Describe how each structure in the body works, from the microscopic to the macroscopic level. It also allows knowing how the various structures interact with each other to achieve normal functioning as a whole.

This state of Balance in which everything works harmoniously is known as homeostasis.

In order to arrive at a good understanding of physiology, it is necessary to master concepts of microscopic structure (histology) and macroscopic (anatomy) of organs and systems, as well as the composition and chemical processes that take place in them (biochemistry).

Physiology is born from man's curiosity to know how the body works, its origin can go back as far as when Hippocrates raised his humoral theory that explained how the various fluids acted and the consequences of their alterations

Some theories that we still hear today such as chi, Energy and the force vital, they are nothing more than ways of trying to describe the functioning of the body based on the knowledge and beliefs of ancient civilizations.

From the eighteenth century, when the study of anatomy began to boom, physiology began to develop, under the principle of Goethe who established that “function in form in action”.

Unlike anatomy, which is based on observation, physiology began to take its first steps based on the investigation, achieving the greatest discoveries of him by achieving the systematization of scientific method.

For the nineteenth century the French Claude Bernard introduces the definition of physiology enunciating it as “Knowledge of the causes of the phenomena of life in a normal state”. This knowledge was initially obtained in animal models, so initially there was talk of an animal physiology whose principles were extrapolated to humans. Currently, advances have allowed physiological studies to determine the exact functioning of human organs and systems, thereby introducing human physiology.