[Endoscopic surgery of the upper gastrointestinal tract]

Clinical application of laparoscopic cholecystectomy was followed by a lot of other endoscopic procedures for the surgical treatment of diseases of the upper gastrointestinal tract. In cases of disorders of esophageal motility traditional procedures can be performed endoscopically. Remarkable experiences were published concerning the cardiomyotomy, and fundoplication. Endoscopic operations could be shown to be a suitable treatment of benign and malignant tumours of the esophagus. Also the nowadays very rarely indicated vagotomy can be performed laparoscopically having good results. During the last year a few new operations could be added by using endoscopic linear staplers for resections and anastomoses such as gastostomies, jejunostomies, gastroenterostomies and even BII resections. In general surgeons are enabled to perform a great variety of procedures by the use of endoscopic techniques.