What is Endoscopy?

There are many types of Endoscopy depending on its application like Arthroscopy (joints), Bronchoscopy (bronchial tubes), Colonoscopy (large intestine), Colposcopy (vagina, cervix), Gastroscopy (stomach, small intestine), Laparoscopy (abdomen), etc.

When Endoscopy of a patient is to be performed than the patient is asked not to eat and drink for a period of 6-8 hours. The medical history of the patient is also taken under consideration as certain drugs like warfarin which is a blood-thinner drug must be stopped to prevent bleeding.

Endoscopy has a wide range of applications like examination of internal organs, guide therapy and repair, Biopsy, locating the place of abnormalities, detecting the cancer even in its early stages, in cancer treatment, in palliative treatment, etc. In Endoscopy either a local anesthetic or a general anesthetic is used depending on the type of procedure to be performed.

The various diseased conditions in which diagnosis through Endoscopy is being preferred are Breathing disorder, Chronic disorder, Internal bleeding, Irritable bowel syndrome, Stomach ulcers, Urinary tract infections, and many more.

 Recent Developments
(a) Capsular Endoscopy in which the patient swallows the capsule which in turn contains a light source and a tiny camera. The capsule travels through the alimentary canal and sends a number of images for diagnosing the path.
(b) Virtual Endoscopy which uses a computer to combine manu images to create a single 3-dimensional picture. It does not require any type of anesthesia.

The various minor risks which are involved in the Endoscopy are infection, organ damage, over-sedation, etc. In Endoscopy the patient does not require to be hospitalized and can be performed even outside a hospital. However if any major side-effects are observed than immediately consult the physician.