The role of fibreoptic oesophagogastroscopy in E.N.T. practice

Fibreoptic endoscopy has only recently become used as a diagnostic tool for the E.N.T. surgeon but it has not been widely used in the investigation of pharyngeal disease. During a two-year period at Warwick Hospital 53 patients have undergone flexible fibreoptic endoscopy using a gastroscope, with visualization of the pharynx, larynx and upper G.I. tract as far as the duodenum. This report describes the technique employed, details the endoscopic findings in 53 patients, and discusses the indications for the technique and the advantages that it holds for the E.N.T. surgeon in the diagnosis and management of pharyngeal disease.