Endoscopy

The endoscopy unit at West Chester Hospital was recently recognized by the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE), and was one of only 32 units in the country, and one of only two in Ohio, to receive this recognition in 2010. In total, only 166 endoscopy units nationally have been recognized.

The recognition comes as part of a national program by the ASGE dedicated to promoting quality in endoscopy. The program honors endoscopy units that follow the ASGE guidelines on privileging, quality assurance, endoscopy reprocessing and infection control.

We are now open until 5 p.m. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, with on-call coverage after-hours, weekends and holidays.

Procedures

West Chester Hospital now offers endoscopic radiofrequency ablation therapy. This is a highly effective treatment for complete eradication of Barrett’s esophagus, a pre-cancerous condition that affects one to two million adults in the United States each year. Barrett’s esophagus often results from acid reflux or heartburn – a problem many people ignore.

Read on for more information about Barrett’s esophagus and its treatment.

Additional endoscopic procedures and tests performed at West Chester Hospital with the use of high-definition endoscopes include:

• Upper GI endoscopy (also called Esophagogastroduodenoscopy)
• Colonoscopy
• Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography (ERCP)
• Endoscopic Bronchial Ultrasound (EBUS) – use of a high frequency transducer to visualize areas outside the lungs and large airways.  EBUS is used to biopsy lymph nodes and stage tumors.
• Manometry and Impedance – Manometry is a procedure that measures pressures at different sites stages within the esophagus for diagnostic purposes. Different types of manometry are anorectal, esophageal, and Sphincter of Oddi. Impedance pH studies help in the evaluation of difficult to manage GERD patients. Impedance determines refluxate presence, distribution, clearing time, liquid, gas or mixed
• Capsule Endoscopy
• Endoscopic Ultrasound – a technique in which a high frequency transducer is built into the tip of an endoscope and is used to visualize images of the GI tract and adjoining structures within 45 centimeters of the gastrointestinal wall. Endoscopic ultrasound is used to find and stage tumors, biopsy nodes and drain cysts.
• Bronchoscopy
• 24-hour pH monitoring – a flexible catheter that is threaded from your nose into your stomach which is secured with adhesive tape to your cheek.  There is a recording device that can measure the level of pH in the esophagus, using the 24-hour catheter. After 24 hours the patient returns to have it removed and its images downloaded. pH monitoring is used to document abnormal esophageal acid exposure and monitor patients with GERD.
• Bravo pH studies – shows the doctor the amount of stomach acid that splashes up into your esophagus causing your heartburn during a normal day through information retrieved by a capsule that is endoscopically attached  to the wall of your esophagus. The capsule transmits data every 12 seconds to a pager that is worn for 48 hours. This capsule naturally sloughs or falls off within a week and travels through your system.