Endoscopy: A Journey into the Inner World of Man

Curiosity is in a person's blood. And the interest in what happens inside our body has always been genuine and unquenchable. Endoscopy has made it possible to look into the inner world of a person and see it in every detail. The term comes from two Greek roots: endon - inside and skopeo - look, “internal looking”, as the Slavophiles of the 19th century would say. Endoscopy is an instrumental method for examining internal organs. This study is carried out using special devices - endoscopes.

Historical excursion

If you think that endoscopy is an invention of the technological 20th century, then you are mistaken. In 2006 it will be exactly 200 years since the invention of the first endoscope. That’s right, this method is a century older than X-ray diagnostics. True, the device for examining the uterus and rectum, designed by Philip Bozzini, was never tested in practice. The medical community in Vienna criticized the invention and punished Bozzini for being “weird.”

The prototype of the endoscope was called Lichtleiter (“light conductor, light guide” - German) and used a burning candle as a light source. The strange Bozzini device was forgotten for almost 50 years, and only in 1853 did the French surgeon Antoine Jean Desormeaux improve the Lichtleiter for use in urological practice.

He equipped the endoscope with an alcohol lamp and used it for the first time to examine the bladder of patients. It is for these merits that many consider Desormeaux the “father of endoscopy.” It should be noted that his device was not perfect either - burns of sensitive mucous membranes were not at all uncommon.

As science developed, so did endoscopes. The discovery of electricity allowed Maximilian Nitze to once again modify the Lichtleiter in 1876, using an Edison lamp as a light source. And in the 20th century, endoscopes first gained partial flexibility and a system of short-focus lenses, which made it possible to examine up to 7/8 of the gastric mucosa. Then they acquired fiber optics and snake-like flexibility, and at the end of the 20th century they became electronic, entering the era of digital technology along with all humanity.

Methods and instruments

So, endoscopy is the general name of a diagnostic technique, and depending on the organ that is being examined, they speak of either gastroscopy (endoscopy of the stomach), or colonoscopy (endoscopy of the colon), or bronchoscopy (endoscopy of the bronchi), or laparoscopy ( endoscopy of the abdominal cavity), or thoracoscopy (endoscopy of the chest cavity), or cystoscopy (endoscopy of the bladder), or combined studies, etc.

Modern endoscopes are long, flexible plastic or rigid metal tubes with a lens at the end. An endoscope can combine two channels - one optical, providing the doctor with an overview of the internal organs, and the second for various specialized instruments.

Typically, endoscopic examination does not require complex special preparation of the patient. Most often, the patient is required to arrive on an empty stomach. Endoscopy allows you to examine in sufficient detail the mucous membrane and lumens of organs, as well as cavities.

Thanks to endoscopy, it has become possible to early diagnose diseases such as peptic ulcers and intestinal polyps.

Using special instruments, it is possible to take a biopsy, stop bleeding, and remove foreign bodies and polyps right during the examination.

Endosurgery is developing - performing operations through an endoscope, which significantly reduces trauma.

Like any medical procedure, endoscopy is not without risks of complications such as perforation, bleeding and infection. However, if all safety rules are followed, these risks are minimal.

Despite possible difficulties, endoscopy remains the most important diagnostic method, allowing one to look into the inner world of a person and