
Non-invasive monitoring of airway inflammation in asthma and COPD
By Paolo Montuschi MD, of the Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy.

By Paolo Montuschi MD, of the Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Rome, Italy.

Endoscopic Ultrasound with Fine Needle Aspiration Biopsy (FNAB) capability is relatively new for Toshiba. Recently the company has introduced a transducer enabling gastroenterologists to perform these kinds of examinations. Dr. Paul Fockens (PhD), Director of Endoscopy at the Academic Medical Centre (AMC) of the University of Amsterdam, is an expert in this field. He has been Director of…

Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) is the combination of ultrasound and endoscopy, which allows placement of high-frequency transducers close to the intestinal wall and adjacent structures. As EUS enters its third decade, it is used for locoregional staging of many upper gastrointestinal malignancies, including cancers of the oesophagus, stomach, duodenum, ampulla of Vater, extrahepatic bile ducts and…

Increasingly more importance is being ascribed to early detection of colon carcinoma and of its precursor stages, since there has been a practically twofold increase in the incidence of this disease in Germany over the past 20 years. With a combination of 1. case history, 2. rectal palpation result, 3.'blood in stools' test (haemoccult) and 4. coloscopy, many conspicuous changes to the intestinal…

Professor Martin Raithel MD* works alongside medical devices manufacturer Bowa on the use of argon plasma coagulation in endoscopy. "The argon unit, in conjunction with the generators of the Bowa ARC range, is working very reliably in different disciplines", he says. "It is opening up new methods in flexible endoscopy with argon-assisted electrosurgery due to its outstanding…

The well-known Whipple procedure, or pancreaticduodenectomy, recently underwent a transformation due to the skills of Nerijus Kaselis MD, Head of Abdominal and Endoscopic Surgery at Klaipeda District Hospital.

Natural orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery (NOTES - a technique that could revolutionize minimally invasive surgery (MIS) by eliminating abdominal incisions - is slowly shifting from research on animal models to human patients.

About a year ago, gastroenterologist Professor Horst Neuhaus began to use a high definition TV (HDTV) system as an aid in the endoscopic procedures carried out at Dusseldorf's Evangelisches Krankenhaus, in the Medical Clinic and Reference Centre for Endoscopy, of which he is head.

Despite thorough cleansing, endoscopy tools can be re-contaminated because non-sterile water is used for the final rinse.

The compact, medically tested Leica Medical Digital Recording System MDRS3 from Leica Microsystems allows video and uncompressed still images recording from multiple cameras without interruption of the video recording.

The épug portable endoscopy device was demonstrated at this year's MEDICA fair in Germany. Currently, this is the only battery operated, digital integrated camera, monitor and digital capture device that has been designed to give surgeons more flexibility to work in various departments.

Brandon Medical has launched a new range of video camera systems for the operating theatre using Sony Professional technology.

The French firm Sopro, a subsidiary of the Acteon Group, has acquired the German company Comeg.

Berchtold camerea systems delivers shadow-free images in all lightning situations

It's a new colour — but not a quality change for new products BOWA-electronic GmbH reports.

The operating `theatre´ exists no longer - at least in St Olavs Hospital (Trondheim University Hospital, Norway) where Europe's first operating studio officially opened this May. Now medical students no longer crane their necks to study surgical procedures. Thanks to this exciting new audio-visual concept they can see more, hear more and learn more.

Czech Republic -.The Ministry of Health has issued a reimbursement policy for PillCam SB capsule endoscopy, produced by Given Imaging Ltd.

By Professor Horst Neuhaus MD, Head of Internal Medicine at the Evangelical Hospital, Dusseldorf, describes highlights during April's 33rd Congress of the German Society of Endoscopy and Imaging Procedures (DGE-BV).

An interview with Dr Andre Roggan, head of research and development at Celon AG, and Dr Markus Mueller, consultant at the Urology Clinic at the University Clinic Benjamin Franklin, Free University Berlin. Venue: 1st International Workshop on Radio-frequency Induced Thermotherapy (RFITT) for the treatment of BPH