What is an endoscopy?

An upper GI endoscopy is a procedure that utilizes an internal camera to look at the throat, esophagus or stomach; this requires the use of sedation. Otolaryngologist Jonathan Aviv, MD, explains the endoscopy procedure and its risks.

Transcript

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[MUSIC PLAYING] JONATHAN AVIV: An endoscopy is the general term for any time you look at the inside of the body

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with a camera, either a flexible camera or a rigid camera.

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Endoscopy, colloquially, is the term we use for looking at the upper digestive tract--

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the esophagus, the throat, the stomach-- to distinguish it from a lower endoscopy, which

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is another name for colonoscopy, where you're looking at the colon. So there's upper endoscopy and lower endoscopy--

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lower endoscopy-- colon, upper endoscopy-- stomach, esophagus, throat.

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People get an endoscopy, which is a look at the stomach and small intestine,

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with a tiny camera that's placed through the mouth. When you're going through the mouth, you have to be sedated because you're

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stimulating the gag reflex. So who is a candidate? Someone that has a lot of stomach pain, someone that has

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had a previous history of an ulcer, either in the stomach or in the small intestine, people with consistent abdominal cramping, unexplained weight

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loss. These are all reasons to have an upper endoscopy. Typically, when you have abdominal pain or nausea

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or a history of ulcer disease, you really need your stomach and small intestine looked at. [HEART BEAT]