Endoscopy

A flexible endoscope.

Endoscopy means to look inside and often means looking inside the body for medical reasons using an instrument called an endoscope. Endoscope is a medical instrument that is made to see parts inside of the patient's body such as the stomach and intestines. It has a long tube to enter the patient's body and a tiny camera attached to the front of this tube. It is usually inserted into patient's nose, mouth, or anus, then organs that doctors want to see are photographed by the camera.
General kinds of the scopes are bronchoscope, esophagoscope, gastroscope, duodenoscope, rectoscope, cystoscope, laperoscope, and so on. And thoracoscope, mediastinoscope, cardioscope are specially used.
Endoscopes are divided into some types. One consists of a long tube to see with the naked eye through this tube. Another is based on lens system. The third is used to insert camera into the patient's body. And the forth is called fiberscope using glass fiber.

Uses

Endoscopy can involve

• The gastrointestinal tract (GI tract):
  • esophagus, stomach and duodenum (esophagogastroduodenoscopy)
  • small intestine
  • colon (colonoscopy,proctosigmoidoscopy)
  • Bile duct
    • endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), duodenoscope-assisted cholangiopancreatoscopy, intraoperative cholangioscopy
• The respiratory tract
  • The nose (rhinoscopy)
  • The lower respiratory tract (bronchoscopy)
• The urinary tract (cystoscopy)
• The female reproductive system
  • The cervix (colposcopy)
  • The uterus (hysteroscopy)
  • The Fallopian tubes (Falloscopy)
• Normally closed body cavities (through a small incision):
  • The abdominal or pelvic cavity (laparoscopy)
  • The interior of a joint (arthroscopy)
  • Organs of the chest (thoracoscopy and mediastinoscopy)
• During pregnancy
  • The amnion (amnioscopy)
  • The fetus (fetoscopy)
• Plastic Surgery
• Panendoscopy (or triple endoscopy)
  • Combines laryngoscopy, esophagoscopy, and bronchoscopy
• Non-medical uses for endoscopy
  • The planning and architectural community have found the endoscope useful for pre-visualization of scale models of proposed buildings and cities (architectural endoscopy)
  • Internal inspection of complex technical systems (borescope)
  • Endoscopes are also a tool helpful in the examination of improvised explosive devices by bomb disposal personnel.
  • The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) uses endoscopes for conducting surveillance in tight spaces.