Endoscopy - esophagography

Endoscpy is an essential tool in the diagnosis of gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) including reflux esophagitis. The Los Angeles (LA) classification was introduced in 1994 to provide endoscopists with a grading system(A-D) to describe and classify the appearance of erosive changes and mucosal breaks in the distal esophagus. Recent imaging techniques such as mucosal staining, magnification, and high-definition(high-resolution) endoscopy and electronic chromoendoscopy have improved the ability to visualize the superficial mucosa of the esophagus. Double-contrast esophagogram have sensitivity approaching 90 % for the diagnosis of reflux esophagitis because of the ability to detect superficial ulcers or other findings that cannot be visualized on single-contrast studies.