Gastroscopy (or EGDS: Esophagus-Gastro-Duodenum-Fluoro) shall mean the analysis of the lumen of the esophagus, stomach and duodenum (the initial section of the small intestine) through a special tool, the gastroscope.
Its clinical importance is critical in the early detection and assessment of gastroenterological diseases. Some of the most common diseases that can be diagnosed by endoscopy are:
Hiatal hernia
Esophagitis
Gastritis
Gastroduodenal
Duodenal Ulcer
Detection Anisakis.
From the late 90s has spread the technique of endoscopic ultrasound, or EUS, which combines a traditional endoscopy ultrasound technique, with significant diagnostic advantages for the study of certain clinical situations.
In some cases (gastroscopy operational), the endoscopy is performed to remove small foreign bodies, termocoagulare lesions, etc.
The gastroscope allows direct observation of the cavity of the esophagus, stomach and duodenum. In fact, it is equipped with a probe of about 8-12 mm in diameter, equipped with a camera and the optical fibers at the end.
The exam is performed on patients fasted for at least ten to twelve hours. The patient in the left lateral decubitus position, the probe is introduced into the mouth, which is then pushed gently into the esophagus, and from there sent down before the stomach and then into the duodenum and the examination is completed by the withdrawal of the probe, and display in retroversion of the same anatomical structures.
Through an internal channel to the probe is also possible the levy - painless - of biopsy samples of tissues, usable for more in-depth investigations Histopathologic (through approaches histological or cytological), and, again through the inner channel, it is possible the use of tools for operative endoscopy (baskets, pliers, coagulators).
The exam is invasive, but safe and with a very low incidence of complications (0.05% of morbidity, and less than 0.006% mortality), and as for all clinical invasive, the patient must give their informed consent before its execution. Its execution duration is short (a few minutes) and is not painful, although the natural swallowing reflex may lead to subsequent, read, pharyngeal irritation; most frequently the examination may cause discomfort, with nausea and retching in vacuum, significantly reducible with minor conscious sedation (benzodiazepines) and the application of topical anesthetics in the oropharynx (lidocaine or xylocaine). In some cases (usually in the presence of significant problems in the execution of the examination, or uncooperative patients), and after evaluation anesthesia, endoscopy can be performed even in deep sedation (by IV administration of propofol or midazolam).
The exam can also be carried out by trans-nasal
