Future developments in endoscopic imaging

Endoscopic imaging capabilities have significantly improved over the past 10 years. Improvements in fibreoptic technology have made possible the development of very thin endoscopes that can directly visualize the biliary and pancreatic ducts. The application of the CCD to endoscopy has made electronic endoscopy possible, and holds promise for stereoendoscopy. The ability to digitize endoscopic images can be developed to store, transmit, magnify, enhance and otherwise manipulate data obtained during endoscopy, and will probably be utilized routinely in the future. Laser and ultrasound technology are likely to enhance significantly our ability to examine ultrastructural aspects of gastrointestinal organs and surrounding tissues, and may play an important role in cancer surveillance programs. Vital staining techniques are likely to find widespread use in early cancer detection programmes, and may be useful to follow prospectively lesions observed or treated during endoscopy. Finally, the new developments in 'virtual imaging' may find applications in the field of gastrointestinal endoscopy and other 'minimally invasive' surgical procedures.