A gastroenterologist is a specialist doctor in the field of diseases related to our digestive system.

These include diseases of the food pipe(esophagus), stomach, small intestine, large intestine, pancreas, liver, bile duct, pancreatic duct, gall bladder etc. they usually have in-depth knowledge of these diseases and help plan out treatment.

Treatment options in gastroenterology may be medical treatment, surgical or endoscopic treatment.

Endoscopy is a technology where a thin flexible tube with a camera enters into a person’s body through natural orifices like mouth or anus. The technology gives a minimally invasive option to diagnose and treat various gastrointestinal diseases.

Endoscopy may be done with local anaesthesia or topical spray or it is done with short general anaesthesia.

Endoscopy normally requires 6 hours of fasting for solid food. Patient cannot take even water for 3 hours. Eating before the procedure may lead to problem in evaluation of endoscopy findings. Also this increases the risk of anesthesia related complications if patient is given general anesthesia.

Colonoscopy is endoscopic procedure done to see large intestine from anus. It requires clean intestines free of stool to see it properly. Patient is asked to take medicine to clear intestines.
For details check our section of colonoscopy.

Normally when we eat food goes into stomach and does not come back. But is some people content in stomach comes back after food in form of food or acid contents. This commonly occurs due to lax lower esophageal sphincter or the valve between food pipe and stomach. Some people have hiatus hernia which may be contributing to it.
High intake of caffeinated beverages, carbonated beverages, alcohol and smoking also contribute to gastro esophageal reflux.
Poor dietary habits, stress, lack of adequate sleep are other contributory factors.
For details check our blog on GERD.

Normally patient can eat after 1 hour of endoscopy. however your anesthetic may give you specific guidelines pertinent to your case. It is advisable to start with some liquids and take solids after 2 hours.

ERCP or endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography is a therapeutic endoscopy. It is a treatment modality used for treatment of bile duct and pancreatic duct diseases.
Bile duct can get blocked due to stone or tumor or inflammation. This can lead to jaundice in patient. This type of jaundice is known as obstructive jaundice. In ERCP various instruments are used through endoscope to enter into bile duct and a stent is placed in the bile duct for relief of jaundice. Doctor can remove stones from bile duct or take biopsy sample s if there is a tumor inside.
ERCP procedure has some complications like pancreatitis, sepsis, perforation and bleeding. ask your doctor about complications before going for the procedure.

EUS or endoscopic ultrasound is a new technology in which there is an ultrasonography probe attached to the endoscope. This helps doctors to see within the wall of intestine ad even outside the wall.
EUS is used for diagnosis of recurrent acute pancreatitis to find biliary microlithiasis, for cbd stones, for early chronic pancreatitis, for pancreatic cystic neoplasms.
EUS is also used to treat various pancreatic fluid collections like pseudocyst of pancreas, walled off pancreatic necrosis etc. it can also be used for drainage of blocked CBD or pancreatic duct when access to the duct is difficult or not possible with ERCP.

24-hour esophageal pH metry is a recording test where pH of stomach / esophagus is measured for 24 hours. PH is measurement of acid content. Lower pH means acidic content and higher pH means lower acidic content. pH 7 is neutral.
This test is normally used in GERD patients for documentation of acid reflux. This is important before going to any surgical or endoscopic intervention.

It is a specialized test where pressure sensors measure pressure inside the food pipe or anal canal. Test is commonly done in patients who have difficulty in swallowing food or dysphagia. Anorectal Manometry is commonly done for constipation or incontinence.
Biofeedback therapy is used for treating constipation patients who have pelvis dyssynergia.

H pylori is a bacterium which can be present in stomach. H pylori is tested for patients who have symptoms of ulcer, dyspepsia.it can be tested easily by H pylori breath test, Rapid urease test done on endoscopic biopsy and H Pylori stool antigen test.

H pylori breath test gives information about H pylori infection in stomach. It is fairly accurate test. It is commonly used to check for h pylori infection and also to check clearance of the infection.
It is not the replacement of endoscopy based test as endoscopy gives much more information like ulcers, tumor, erosions in the stomach.

Capsule endoscopy is a technology in which there is a small camera within the capsule. Capsule takes multiple images from inside of intestines and relays it to the receiver outside body.
Capsule endoscopy is commonly used for diseases of small intestine where standard endoscopy cannot reach.

Endoscopy usually does not have any complications.
However, it can lead to minor complications like sore throat, throat pain.
Rarely complications can be severe such as allergic reactions to anesthetic drugs, bleeding, perforation and very rarely death.

Liver cirrhosis is a end stage disease of liver. Here liver architecture is permanently disturbed. this reduces the functional capacity of liver. It can have varied symptoms like leg swelling, abdominal distention, bleeding from intestines, repeated infections, jaundice, loss of consciousness etc.
One should contact doctor if any of above symptoms develop.
Liver cirrhosis patient should restrict sodium intake in diet. They can eat normal protein and normal fat diet.
Liver cirrhosis patients should be vaccinated for common diseases like pneumonia, swine flu, hepatitias A and hepatitias B .
For furher information read our liver cirrhosis blog.

Obstructive jaundice is a type of jaundice where bile duct which normally caries bile from liver to intestines gets blocked somewhere during the course.
Cause of this block is stone, tumor or inflammation.
These patients will require removal of blockage or creation of alternative route for bile flow. Commonly these patients are treated with combination of endoscopic treatment and surgery.

Endoscopy is done to get more information about a person’s disease. Biopsy word simply means taking sample from our body to get more information. This can be for diagnosis of a disease. Though it is commonly done for cancer. Many other diseases are also diagnosed with biopsy.
Diseases like celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease, some infections are also diagnosed with biopsy. So biopsy does not always mean cancer.

Lactose intolerance is checked with lactase rapid test, lactase genetic analysis and lactose hydrogen breath test.
It is important to check for lactose intolerance as stopping milk in diet without intolerance can create nutritional issues for vegetarians.
To know more about lactose intolerance please read our blog.

GERD or gastroesophageal reflux disease is very common problem. Most patients respond to proton pump inhibitors and life style modification. However some patients are unable to stop PPIS.
This group requires consideration for endoscopic/ laparoscopic fundoplication. Before surgery they should be evaluated with 24 hours esophageal ph metry and esophageal Manometry.
Endoscopic fundoplication is new non-surgical method with 60 to 70 percent response. GERDex is the most common device used and available in INDIA.

Obesity is a pandemic. Various treatment options are available for patients with obesity like drugs, diet and exercise, bariatric surgery.
There was a huge need of endoscopic technique to treat this patient. We do endoscopic balloon placement and endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty surgery at our center.
Endoscopic sleeve gastroplasty is the treatment for patients with BMI between 30 -40 and no comorbidities. It can induce 15 to 20 percent weight loss.
To know more about this procedure connect to us .
As this does not involve surgery most common side effects are mild pain and nausea. Anesthesia related risk is same as the procedure requires intubation.