Endoscopy gives us a way to see inside pets. It lets us examine internal organs and body parts without invasive exploratory surgery, though it requires anesthesia. Flexible and rigid endoscopes or scopes let us examine, biopsy, and treat diseases of the respiratory tract—nose, sinuses, and lungs; the gastrointestinal system—stomach, intestines, and colon; genitourinary tract—vagina, urethra, bladder, and ureter; and ears in a minimally invasive manner.

Scopes also let us retrieve foreign objects in the respiratory or gastrointestinal tract. That lets your pet avoid a potentially painful surgery. Our surgeons, internists, and dermatologist perform diverse minimally invasive thoracoscopic, laparoscopic, otoscopic and arthroscopic surgical procedures. Here are a few such procedures.

Flexible Endoscopy

• Bronchoscopy—examination of the lower airways
• Colonoscopy—examination of the colon, cecum, large bowel, and rectum
• Endoscopy—examination of the esophagus, stomach, and upper intestines

Rigid Endoscopy

• Arthroscopy—examination of soft tissue structures and joint cartilage
• Cystoscopy—examination of the vagina, urethral/ureteral openings, urethra, and bladder
• Laparoscopy—examination of the abdominal cavity via tiny incisions in the abdomen or navel
• Otoscopy—examination of the ear canals and eardrum
• Proctoscopy—examination of the large bowel and rectum
• Rhinoscopy—examination of the nasal cavity and nasopharynx
• Thoracoscopy—examination of the chest cavity, performed rarely