endoscopy

During an endoscopy procedure, a thin, lighted tube — called an endoscope — is inserted into your body either through your mouth or your rectum. A camera at the end of this tube transmits images, allowing the physician to clearly view the desired area in your digestive or respiratory tract. If needed, tiny instruments can be passed through this tube to remove a small sample of tissue for biopsy or to treat any abnormal areas.

Endoscopic procedures may be performed for the following purposes:

• Diagnostic — to help identify and analyze medical conditions
• Screening — to help prevent diseases, such as colon cancer
• Therapeutic — to treat a disease or remove abnormal tissues

Your doctor may order a specific endoscopy procedure for you in response to your symptoms, such as difficulty swallowing, breathing problems, nausea or abdominal pain.

Anderson offers a range of specialized endoscopic procedures and treatments, each focusing on a specific organ or area in your body, including:

• Upper GI Endoscopy
  • Checks your stomach, esophagus and the first part of your small intestine for a variety of medical conditions
• Lower GI Endoscopy
  • Checks your colon and rectum for possible concerns, including polyps that may lead to cancer
• Cystourethroscopy
  • Checks your urethra and bladder
• Bronchoscopy
  • Checks your windpipe and the airways to your lungs (only available at Anderson Regional Medical Center)
• Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangio Pancreatography (ERCP)
  • Checks your gall bladder, pancreas and bile ducts (only available at Anderson Regional Medical Center)

• Colonoscopy (large intestine)

  • By inserting a lighted scope into the rectum the physicians can examine the entire large intestine. This procedure is performed to diagnose the cause of symptoms such as chronic diarrhea, anemia, or rectal bleeding. This is also used as a screening procedure to detect colon polyps or cancer in patients who are at higher risk.

• EGD (upper digestive tract)

  • Esophagogastroduodenoscopy is the examination of the esophagus, stomach, and duodenum. By passing a lighted scope down the throat and into the stomach, the physician can visualize the lining. This gives the physician the ability to diagnose the causes of indigestion, difficulty swallowing, upper abdominal pain, or anemia.

• Flexible Sigmoidoscopy

  • The physician will insert a short, flexible, lighted tube into your rectum and slowly guide it into your colon. The tube is called a sigmoidoscope (sig-MOY-duh-skope). The scope transmits an image of the inside of the rectum and colon, so the physician can carefully examine the lining.

• Esophageal Dilation

  • By passing a tapered dilator down the throat and through the esophagus, the physician can stretch the esophagus. This procedure is performed for patients who have difficulty swallowing as a result of a hiatal hernia or scar tissue from reflux.

• Polypectomy

  • Removal of a polyp (abnormal growth of tissue projecting from a mucous membrane) through colonoscopy.

• Biopsy

  • Removal of cells or tissues for examination. The tissue is generally examined under a microscope by a pathologist, and can also be analyzed chemically.

• Cystoscopy (lower urinary tract)

  • By inserting a lighted scope into the bladder, the physician can examine the lining of the bladder. This procedure is performed to diagnose the causes of symptoms such as frequent urinary tract infection, blood in the urine, or difficulty urinating.

• Dilation of Urethral Strictures

  • A urethral stricture is an abnormal narrowing of the tube that carries urine out of the body from the bladder. Urethral dilation is a procedure to stretch the urethra and is typically used to help with urine flow.