In House M.D., what is Dr. Gregory House’s medical specialty before he leads the diagnostic team?

Dr. Gregory House’s specialties in House M.D. are infectious disease and nephrology.

Infectious disease concerns illnesses caused by bacteria, viruses, fungi, and parasites, while nephrology focuses on the kidneys and related disorders. House’s combined expertise helps explain why he can approach puzzling cases from both a systemic and organ-specific perspective.

The series primarily presents House as the head of Diagnostic Medicine, a department that investigates cases other doctors cannot solve. Diagnostic medicine is not usually treated as a single traditional specialty in the same way as cardiology or nephrology; the show uses it as a dramatic framework for broad clinical reasoning.

Some viewers remember only nephrology because House’s department is repeatedly associated with difficult kidney cases. The canonical character description identifies both infectious disease and nephrology, making the paired answer more precise than either specialty alone.