EGD and Colonoscopy Instructions
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What is an Upper Endoscopy (EGD)?
What is an Upper Endoscopy (EGD)?
An upper endoscopy, also known as an esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD), enables doctors to examine the upper digestive tract, which includes the:
Esophagus (“food tube” that connects the mouth to the stomach)
Stomach
Duodenum (upper part of the small intestine)
Doctors perform an EGD using an endoscope, a long, flexible tube with a camera and light at its tip. The doctor carefully guides the endoscope through the mouth and down the throat to view the upper digestive tract.
Doctors see images of the digestive tract and can take color photos of specific areas. They may take a biopsy (tissue sample) of abnormal tissue, such as growths, irritations, or ulcers, which are sores in the intestine’s lining.
The doctor then sends the tissue sample to a pathologist, a doctor who analyzes tissues under a microscope to help diagnose diseases. The pathologist can identify disorders in the upper digestive tract.
What is a Colonoscopy?
What is a Colonoscopy?
Colonoscopy is a procedure that enables a physician (usually a gastroenterologist) to directly image and examine the entire colon. It is effective in the diagnosis and/or evaluation of various GI disorders (e.g. colon polyps, colon cancer, diverticulosis, inflammatory bowel disease, bleeding, change in bowel habits, abdominal pain, obstruction, and abnormal x-rays or CT scans) as well as in providing therapy (for example, removal of polyps or control of bleeding). It is also used for screening for colon cancer. A key advantage of this technique is that it allows both imaging of abnormal findings and also therapy or removal of these lesions during the same examination. This procedure is particularly helpful for the identification and removal of precancerous polyps.
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