Endoscopy

Endoscopy means to look inside. This often means looking inside the body for medical reasons with an endoscope.

An endoscope is a medical instrument that is made to see parts inside a patient's body. This has the advantage that observations and certain operations can be done without opening up the body. Whatever precautions are taken, an open body part is always at risk of infection.

The endoscope has a long tube to enter the patient's body and a tiny camera or lens attached to the front of this tube. Sometimes the tube is guided through the body using outside imaging.

It is usually inserted into patient's nose, mouth, or anus, so surgeons can see what is there. If necessary, action can be taken, like getting a tissue biopsy.

 Parts 
An endoscope has at least some of these parts:
a rigid or flexible tube.
a light, which is usually outside the body and delivered by an optical fibre system.
a lens system which takes the image from the objective lens to the viewer. This can be done by a relay lens system in the case of rigid endoscopes or a bundle of fiberoptics in the case of a fibrescope.
an eyepiece. Modern instruments may be videoscopes, with no eyepiece. In these a camera transmits image to a screen. This has the advantage that the image can be seen by all in the operating theatre. 
an additional channel to carry medical instruments or manipulators.

 Uses 
Endoscopy can involve 
 The gastrointestinal tract (GI tract):
 esophagus, stomach and duodenum 
 small intestine
 colon 
 Bile duct
 The respiratory tract
 The nose 
 The lower respiratory tract (bronchoscopy)
 The urinary tract 
 The female reproductive system
 The cervix 
 The uterus 
 The Fallopian tubes 
 Normally closed body cavities (through a small incision):
 The abdominal or pelvic cavity 
 The interior of a joint
 Organs of the chest 
 During pregnancy
 The amnion 
 The foetus 
 Plastic Surgery
 Panendoscopy (or triple endoscopy)
 Combines larynx, esophagogus, 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 
 Internal inspection of complex technical systems 
 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.

 Related pages 
 nuclear medicine

 References  

Category:Medical imaging
Category:Medical procedures