Min lnvas Ther & Allied Techno1 1998:7/3:193

Guest Editorial

Mini and microendoscopy H-U Obbarius

This issue of MITAT is devoted to the subject of mini and microendoscopy and thus to a field which offers the possibility of taking a further step in reducing patient morbidity.

The change from using 10 or 5 mm laparoscopes to mini and microendoscopes will also open new fields of application which require such slim instruments. The papers included in this issue provide a good overview of the technical possibilities currently available for the design of optics and mechanical hand instruments. They also focus on the technical limits of material properties, such as susceptibility to bending and breaking, or physical limitations such as illumination and image quality. With reusable instruments an important factor for consideration by the user is their durability. The strain on these instruments comes from both their use and their reprocessing, which involves aggressive chemico- thermal cleaning and sterilization.

The articles on laparoscopic general surgery, as well as on gynecology, look into questions dealing with the applicability of minilaparoscopic instrument- ation. Questions relating to image quality adequate for diagnostics, as well as the feasibility of minor surgical interventions are also addressed.

For special fields, such as ENT (otorhinolaryngology, head and neck surgery) and neurosurgery, the appli-

cations described are only made possible through the use of microinstruments. The articles describe the experience gained from their use in the Eustachian tube, middle ear, paranasal sinus and salivary duct. In addition, they describe both the advantages and the limitations of microinstruments, as compared with standard procedures.

A close cooperation between physicians and technicians is a prerequisite for the successful development of technical solutions for the use of microendoscopy in medicine. With this cooperation, demanding requirements, e.g. in neurosurgery, can be translated into technical solutions, with new technologies being developed to the limit of what is technically feasible. This is exemplified by the MINOP project. The paper by P. Wieneke outlines the instrument system developed, the project sequence and the clinical results.

For all the medical procedures presented, the benefit for the patient brought about by minimally invasive techniques can be demonstrated. In summary, fundamentals have been elaborated for microendoscopy and further developments will be possible.

0 1998 lsis Medical Media Ltd 193

Min

im I

nvas

ive

The

r A

llied

Tec

hnol

Dow

nloa

ded

from

info

rmah

ealth

care

.com

by

CD

L-U

C S

anta

Cru

z on

10/

26/1

4Fo

r pe

rson

al u

se o

nly.