General information
A gastroscopy or gastroscopy is performed for the diagnostic examination of the esophagus, stomach (gaster) and duodenum. A plastic tube with a light source and a small camera (optic), the so-called gastroscope, is inserted through the mouth and esophagus into the stomach. The optics allow diseases or injuries to be visualized on a screen, and through openings in the gastroscope, microdevices can be advanced during gastroscopy if necessary, which can also be used to treat certain findings.
For example
- Liquids are sucked off or fed in
- Tissue samples taken
- Bleeding in the upper digestive tract stopped
- Superficial tissue changes are removed directly.
A gastroscopy is usually a short examination of about ten minutes and is considered low-risk. It is mainly used in cases of suspected gastritis, ulcer, tumor, varicose veins in the esophagus (esophageal varices) or bacterial infection of the stomach with Helicobacter pylori. To perform a gastroscopy, the flexible gastroscope must first be inserted into the stomach through the mouth and oesophagus.
When awake, the tube can be actively “swallowed”, but this often causes a gag reflex. It is possible to numb the throat slightly with a spray beforehand to suppress the gagging sensation and any pain. For people with a particularly pronounced gag reflex, for anxious or agitated persons, a sedative can be administered, or a light anaesthetic can be introduced for gastroscopy.
However, due to the short duration of a gastroscopy, this is usually not necessary. However, if the patient wishes, an anaesthetic can still be used. In this case, the anaesthetic procedure consists of the administration of an anxiety-relieving tablet before the gastroscopy, and the administration of an anaesthetic. In contrast to the local anaesthesia otherwise used, general anaesthesia or general anaesthesia completely eliminates both the sensation of pain and the consciousness of the patient, as the administered drugs act in the central nervous system (especially the brain). This creates optimal conditions for the examining doctor to perform the gastroscopy.
