| Theme | Gastrointestinal Endoscopy in Children | |
|---|---|---|
| Title | Upper Gastrointestinal Endoscopy in the Pediatric Population | |
| Publish Date | 2015/03 | |
| Author | Shin‒ichiro Hagiwara | Division of General Pediatrics, Saitama Children's Medical Center |
| Author | Mitsuru Kubota | Division of General Pediatrics, Saitama Children's Medical Center |
| Author | Seiichi Kagimoto | Division of General Pediatrics, Saitama Children's Medical Center |
| [ Summary ] | When performing pediatric upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, endoscopists should consider three points. First, the type of endoscope should be selected according to the patient's age, physical size (especially body weight) and the purpose of the examination. Second, sedation and anesthesia are needed for pediatric patients unless they are relatively older (e. g., enrolled in junior high school or higher). In the case of neonates or infants, general anesthesia with endotracheal intubation is essential because of the risk of airway compression following upper gastrointestinal endoscopy. Third, in the pediatric population, a diagnostic mucosal biopsy should be routinely performed even if endoscopy reveals a normal mucosa. Histopathological examination of the biopsy samples is useful for diagnosis, because pediatric diseases are usually inflammatory, immunologic, allergic, or genetic. |
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