What is an Endoscopy
An endoscopy is a non-surgical procedure in which your doctor uses specialized instruments to view and operate on the internal organs and vessels of your body. In this procedure the surgeon uses a long, thin and flexible tube called the endoscope, which has a light and camera attached to it to see inside the body. The camera captures coloured images of the internal organs of the body and displays it on a monitor to be viewed by the doctor. The minimally-invasive endoscopy procedure involves inserting the endoscope into an opening of the body, such as the mouth, the nostrils or the anal cavity.
What is the need of Endoscopy
An Endoscopy is usually needed:
- to help the doctor determine the cause of any abnormal symptoms you’re having
- to remove a small sample of tissue, which can then be sent to a lab for further testing; this is called an endoscopic biopsy
- to help your doctor see inside the body during a surgical procedure, such as repairing a stomach ulcer, or removing gallstones or tumors
The doctor may perform an endoscopy if you’re having symptoms of any of the following conditions:
- inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), such as ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease
- stomach ulcer
- chronic constipation
- pancreatitis
- gallstones
- unexplained bleeding in the digestive tract
- tumors
- infections
- blockage of the esophagus
- gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- hiatal hernia
- unusual vaginal bleeding
- blood in your urine
- other digestive tract issues
The doctor will review your symptoms, perform a physical examination, and possibly order some blood tests prior to an endoscopy. These tests will help the doctor to gain a more accurate understanding of the possible cause of your symptoms. These tests may also help them determine if the problems can be treated without endoscopy or surgery.
An Endoscopy is usually needed:
- to help the doctor determine the cause of any abnormal symptoms you’re having
- to remove a small sample of tissue, which can then be sent to a lab for further testing; this is called an endoscopic biopsy
- to help your doctor see inside the body during a surgical procedure, such as repairing a stomach ulcer, or removing gallstones or tumors
The doctor may perform an endoscopy if you’re having symptoms of any of the following conditions:
- inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD), such as ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease
- stomach ulcer
- chronic constipation
- pancreatitis
- gallstones
- unexplained bleeding in the digestive tract
- tumors
- infections
- blockage of the esophagus
- gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- hiatal hernia
- unusual vaginal bleeding
- blood in your urine
- other digestive tract issues
The doctor will review your symptoms, perform a physical examination, and possibly order some blood tests prior to an endoscopy. These tests will help the doctor to gain a more accurate understanding of the possible cause of your symptoms. These tests may also help them determine if the problems can be treated without endoscopy or surgery.