Endoscopy – Types, Medical Uses / Indications, Procedure

Last updated: February 7, 2026Reviewed date: February 7, 2026Reading time: 5 min read

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Endoscopy (looking inside) is used in medicine to look inside the body. The endoscopy procedure uses an endoscope to examine the interior of a hollow organ or cavity of the body. Unlike many other medical imaging techniques, endoscopes are inserted directly into the organ. There are many types of endoscopes. Depending on the site in...

For severe symptoms, danger signs, pregnancy, child illness, or sudden worsening, seek urgent medical care.

বাংলা রোগী নোট এখনো যোগ করা হয়নি। পোস্ট এডিটরে “RX Bangla Patient Mode” বক্স থেকে সহজ বাংলা সারাংশ যোগ করুন।

এই তথ্য শিক্ষা ও সচেতনতার জন্য। এটি ডাক্তারি পরীক্ষা, রোগ নির্ণয় বা প্রেসক্রিপশনের বিকল্প নয়।

Article Summary

Key Takeaways

This article explains Types of Endoscopy in simple medical language.
This article explains Medical Uses of Endoscopy in simple medical language.
This article explains Applications of Endoscopy in simple medical language.
This article explains Risk of gastrointestinal endoscopy in simple medical language.

Educational health guideWritten for patient understanding and clinical awareness.

Reviewed content workflowUse writer and reviewer profiles for stronger trust.

Emergency safety firstUrgent warning signs are highlighted below.

Seek urgent medical care if you notice

These warning signs are general safety guidance. Local emergency numbers and clinical judgment should always come first.

Severe symptoms, breathing difficulty, fainting, confusion, or rapidly worsening illness.
New weakness, severe pain, high fever, or symptoms after a serious injury.
Any symptom that feels urgent, unusual, or unsafe for the patient.

Emergency now

Use emergency care for severe, sudden, rapidly worsening, or life-threatening symptoms.

See a doctor

Book a professional medical evaluation if symptoms persist, worsen, recur often, affect daily activities, or occur in a high-risk patient.

Learn safely

Use this article to understand possible causes, tests, treatment options, prevention, and questions to ask your clinician.

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Start here Choose the right pathway for symptoms, reports, medicines, or urgent warning signs. Disease article roadmap Read this topic step by step: meaning, symptoms, warning signs, diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and follow-up. Treatment planner Prepare questions about treatment choices, benefits, risks, side effects, and follow-up. Family & caregiver guide Organize symptoms, reports, medicines, questions, and follow-up safely. Nutrition & diet guide Prepare food, hydration, supplement, and medicine-timing questions safely. Prevention guide Organize risk factors, protective habits, screening, and warning signs. Recovery guide Prepare a safe plan for activity, rehabilitation, warning signs, and follow-up.

Definition

Endoscopy (looking inside) is used in medicine to look inside the body. The endoscopy procedure uses an endoscope to examine the interior of a hollow organ or cavity of the body. Unlike many other medical imaging techniques, endoscopes are inserted directly into the organ.

There are many types of endoscopes. Depending on the site in the body and type of procedure an endoscopy may be performed either by a doctor or a surgeon. A patient may be fully conscious or anesthetized during the procedure. Most often the term endoscopy is used to refer to an examination of the upper part of the gastrointestinal tract, known as an esophagogastroduodenoscopy.

Types of Endoscopy

Endoscopies fall into categories, based on the area of the body that they investigate. The American Cancer Society (ACS) lists the following types of endoscopies

Type	Area examined	Where scope is inserted	Doctors who typically perform the surgery
arthroscopy	joints	through a small incision near the examined joint	orthopedic surgeon
bronchoscopy	lungs	into the nose or mouth	pulmonologist or thoracic surgeon
colonoscopy	colon	through the anus	gastroenterologist or proctologist
cystoscopy	bladder	through the urethra	urologist
enteroscopy	small intestine	through the mouth or anus	gastroenterologist
hysteroscopy	inside of the uterus	through the vagina	gynecologists or gynecological surgeons
laparoscopy	abdominal or pelvic area	through a small incision near the examined area	various types of surgeons
laryngoscopy	larynx	through the mouth or nostril	otolaryngologist, also known as an ear, nose, and throat (ENT) doctor
mediastinoscopy	mediastinum, the area between the lungs	through an incision above the breastbone	thoracic surgeon
sigmoidoscopy	a href=”/resources/category/human-body-maps/rectum”>rectum and the lower part of the large intestine, known as the sigmoid colon	into the anus	gastroenterologist or proctologist
thoracoscopy, also known as a pleuroscopy	the area between the lungs and the chest wall	through a small incision in the chest	a pulmonologist or thoracic surgeon
upper gastrointestinal endoscopy, also known as an esophagogastroduodenoscopy	esophagus and upper intestinal tract	through the mouth	gastroenterologist
ureteroscopy	ureter	through the urethra	urologist

Medical Uses of Endoscopy

Operation part of the endoscope

Insertion tip of an endoscope

A health care provider may use endoscopy for any of the following:

investigation of symptoms, such as symptoms in the digestive system including nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, difficulty swallowing, and gastrointestinal bleeding.
confirmation of a diagnosis, most commonly by performing a biopsy to check for conditions such as anemia, bleeding, infection, or irritation, often causing pain, swelling, heat, or redness. সহজ বাংলা: শরীরের প্রদাহ; ব্যথা, ফোলা বা লালভাব হতে পারে।" data-rx-term="inflammation" data-rx-definition="Inflammation is the body’s response to injury, infection, or irritation, often causing pain, swelling, heat, or redness. সহজ বাংলা: শরীরের প্রদাহ; ব্যথা, ফোলা বা লালভাব হতে পারে।">inflammation, and cancers of the digestive system.
giving treatment, such as cauterization of a bleeding vessel, widening a narrow esophagus, clipping off a polyp, or removing a foreign object.

Specialty professional organizations that specialize in digestive problems advise that many patients with Barrett’s esophagus are too frequently receiving endoscopies. Such societies recommend that patients with Barrett’s esophagus and no cancer symptoms after two biopsies receive biopsies as indicated and no more often than the recommended rate.

Applications of Endoscopy

An anoscope, a proctoscope, and a rectoscope with approximate lengths

Endoscopy surgery – Health care providers can use endoscopy to review any of the following body parts:

The gastrointestinal tract (GI tract)

esophagus, stomach, and duodenum (esophagogastroduodenoscopy)
small intestine (enteroscopy)
large intestine/colon (colonoscopy, sigmoidoscopy)
Magnification endoscopy
bile duct – endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), duodenoscope-assisted cholangiopancreatoscopy, intraoperative cholangioscopy
rectum (proctoscopy) and anus (anoscopy), both also referred to as (proctoscopy)

The respiratory tract

The nose (rhinoscopy)
The lower respiratory tract (bronchoscopy)
The ear (otoscope)
The urinary tract (cystoscopy)

The female reproductive system (gyroscope)

The cervix (colposcopy)
The uterus (hysteroscopy)
The fallopian tubes (fluoroscopy)

Normally closed body cavities (through a small incision)

The abdominal or pelvic cavity (laparoscopy)
The interior of a joint (arthroscopy)
Organs of the chest (thoracoscopy and mediastinoscopy)

Endoscopy is used for many procedures

During pregnancy

The amnion (amnioscopy)
The fetus (fetoscopy)
Plastic surgery
Panendoscopy (or triple endoscopy)
Combines laryngoscopy, esophagoscopy, and bronchoscopy

Orthopedic surgery

Hand surgery, such as endoscopic carpal tunnel release
Knee surgery, such as anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction
Epidural space (Epiduroscopy)
Bursae (Bursectomy)

Endodontic surgery

Maxillary sinus surgery
Apicoectomy
Endoscopic endonasal surgery
Endoscopic spinal surgery

Risk of gastrointestinal endoscopy

Upper GI endoscopy (EGD): Although rare, bleeding and puncture of your esophagus or stomach walls are possible during EGD. Other complications include the following
Severe irregular heartbeat
Pulmonary aspiration – When material, either particulate (food, foreign body) or fluid (gastric contents, blood, or saliva), enters from your throat into your windpipe
Infections and fever that wax and wain
Respiratory depression, a decrease in the rate or depth of breathing, in people with severe lung diseases or liver cirrhosis
The reaction of the vagus nerve system to the sedatives
Lower GI endoscopy (colonoscopy, sigmoidoscopy, enteroscopy): Although uncommon, possible complications of colonoscopy and sigmoidoscopy include the following:
Local pain
Dehydration (due to excess of laxatives and enemas for bowel preparation)
Cardiac arrhythmias
Bleeding and infection in the bowel, usually after a biopsy or removal of a polyp.
Perforation or hole in the bowel wall
The explosion of combustible gases in the colon (certain gases are produced within the bowel) during removal of polyps
Respiratory depression usually due to oversedation in people with chronic lung disease

References

Safety note: This is not a prescription or diagnosis. For severe symptoms, pregnancy danger signs, children with serious illness, chest pain, breathing difficulty, stroke-like weakness, or major injury, seek urgent care.

Which doctor may help?

Start with a registered doctor or the nearest qualified health center.

What to tell the doctor

Write when the problem started and how it changed.
Bring old prescriptions, investigation reports, and current medicines.
Write allergies, pregnancy status, diabetes, kidney/liver disease, and major past illnesses.
Bring one family member if the patient is weak, elderly, confused, or a child.

Questions to ask

What is the most likely cause of my symptoms?
Which danger signs mean I should go to hospital quickly?
Which tests are necessary now, and which can wait?
How should I take medicines safely and what side effects should I watch for?
When should I come for follow-up?

Tests to discuss

Vital signs: temperature, pulse, blood pressure, oxygen saturation
Basic physical examination by a clinician
CBC, urine test, blood sugar, or imaging only when clinically needed

Avoid these mistakes

Do not use antibiotics, steroid tablets/injections, or strong painkillers without proper medical advice.
Do not hide pregnancy, kidney disease, ulcer, allergy, or blood thinner use.
Do not delay emergency care when danger signs are present.

Medicine safety and first-aid guide

This section is for patient education only. It does not replace a doctor, pharmacist, or emergency care.

Safe first steps

Drink safe fluids and monitor temperature.
In dengue-prone areas, discuss CBC and platelet count when fever persists or warning signs appear.
Use tepid sponging for high fever discomfort; avoid ice-cold bathing.

OTC medicine safety

For fever, common fever medicine may be discussed with a clinician or pharmacist.
Avoid aspirin/ibuprofen-like medicines in suspected dengue unless a doctor says it is safe.

Avoid these mistakes

Do not start antibiotics without a proper medical decision.
Do not use steroid tablets or injections casually for quick relief.
Do not delay emergency care because of home remedies.

Get urgent help if

Fever with breathing difficulty, confusion, repeated vomiting, bleeding, severe weakness, stiff neck, or dehydration needs urgent care.

Medicine names, dose, and timing must be decided by a qualified clinician or pharmacist after checking age, pregnancy, allergy, other diseases, and current medicines.

For rural patients and family caregivers

Patient health record and symptom diary

Write your symptoms, medicines already taken, test results, and questions before visiting a doctor. This note stays on your device unless you print or copy it.

Doctor to discuss: Medicine doctor / pediatrician for children / qualified clinician

Tests to discuss with doctor

Temperature chart and hydration assessment
CBC with platelet count if fever persists or dengue/other infection is possible
Urine test, malaria/dengue tests, chest evaluation, or blood culture only when clinically indicated

Questions to ask

What is the most likely cause of my symptoms?
Which warning signs mean I should go to emergency care?
Which tests are really needed now?
Which medicines are safe for my age, pregnancy status, allergy, kidney/liver/stomach condition, and current medicines?
Do I need antibiotics, or is this more likely viral?

Emergency warning signs such as chest pain, severe breathing difficulty, sudden weakness, confusion, severe dehydration, major injury, or loss of bladder/bowel control need urgent medical care. Do not wait for online information.

Go to emergency care if you notice:

Severe or rapidly worsening symptoms
Breathing difficulty, chest pain, fainting, confusion, severe weakness, major injury, or severe dehydration

Doctor / service to discuss: Qualified healthcare provider; specialist depends on symptoms and examination.

Step 1
Check danger signs first

If danger signs are present, seek emergency care and do not wait for online information.
Step 2
Record the symptom story

Write when symptoms started, severity, medicines already taken, allergies, pregnancy status, and test results.
Step 3
Visit a qualified clinician

A doctor, nurse, or qualified healthcare provider can examine you and decide which tests or treatment are needed.
Step 4
Do only useful tests

Do tests after clinical assessment. Avoid unnecessary tests, random antibiotics, or repeated medicines without diagnosis.
Step 5
Follow up and return early if worse

If symptoms worsen, new warning signs appear, or treatment is not helping, return for review quickly.

Rural patient practical tips

Take a written symptom diary and all previous prescriptions/test reports.
Do not hide medicines already taken, even herbal or over-the-counter medicines.
Ask which warning signs mean urgent referral to hospital.

This roadmap is for education. A real diagnosis and treatment plan requires history, examination, and clinical judgment.

RX Patient Help

Ask a health question safely

Write your symptom story. A health professional or site editor can review it before any answer is prepared. This box is not for emergency care.

Emergency first: Severe chest pain, breathing trouble, unconsciousness, stroke signs, severe injury, heavy bleeding, or rapidly worsening symptoms need urgent local medical care now.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Is this article a replacement for a doctor?

No. It is educational content only. Patients should consult a qualified clinician for diagnosis and treatment.

When should I seek urgent care?

Seek urgent care for severe symptoms, rapidly worsening condition, breathing difficulty, severe pain, neurological changes, or any emergency warning sign.