Doctors may perform endoscopy for a variety of reasons, which may include investigating symptoms, diagnosing or treating a disease, or tracking the progression of a specific condition:
Research symptoms
Certain symptoms warrant endoscopy:
Abnormal X-ray results
upper gastrointestinal bleeding
Blood in vomit or stool - the stool may be black and the vomit may look like coffee grounds
hard to swallow
Heartburn
Mysterious weight loss
Persistent, unexplained abdominal pain
Unexplained anemia, a condition in which the number of healthy red blood cells is insufficient
Diagnose disease
If a doctor suspects that a patient may have a digestive tract disease or condition, they may recommend an endoscopy to confirm or rule out a specific diagnosis. Some diseases or conditions that endoscopy can detect include:
Digestive tract obstruction and inflammation
Cancerous and noncancerous tumors of the stomach, esophagus, or intestines
Celiac disease
Crohn's disease
Foreign body in the digestive tract
gastritis
Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
narrowing of the esophagus
Stomach ulcers, also called peptic ulcers
Swallowing disorders, such as esophagitis or general dysphagia
Monitor or treat disease
Gastroenterologists also use endoscopy to treat and monitor a variety of diseases and conditions. Some of the ways gastrointestinal doctors use endoscopy as a treatment include:
Control upper gastrointestinal bleeding
Performing a biopsy to collect tissue for diagnostic purposes, such as to determine whether a polyp is cancerous
Remove foreign bodies, polyps or tumors from the digestive tract
Stretching a narrow esophagus
Track tumor progression or check for conditions like Barrett's esophagus—a condition involving precancerous growths
X-rays are the standard diagnostic procedure for most cases of digestive problems. Still, endoscopy can be valuable when X-rays don't give doctors the information they need about digestive tract problems. Sometimes, endoscopy is combined with other imaging procedures, such as ultrasound or X-rays.
