New Endoscopy System Offers 330-Degree View of Colon

A new full-spectrum endoscopy system that gives doctors a 330-degree view during colonoscopies may help them miss fewer adenomas during exams, according to a new study presented this week at Digestive Disease Week in Orlando, Fla.

EndoChoice Inc.’s Fuse system is a proprietary arrangement of three small cameras at the tip of a flexible gastrointestinal endoscope, enabling doctors to see nearly twice as much surface area as they can with traditional endoscopes that use only one camera. Naturally occurring folds in the anatomy of both the colon and stomach present problem areas that can easily go undetected with traditional endoscopes. The Fuse system, however, can help doctors to see into and behind those folds.

A multicenter trial conducted in the US, Europe and Israel compared the Fuse system to traditional endoscopes during a series of colonoscopies on 185 patients. The endoscope used in the first examination was selected randomly. After the first inspection, each patient immediately underwent a second colonoscopy with the Fuse system. The trial showed traditional colonoscopes missed 42 percent of adenomas, while the Fuse instrument missed 8 percent. Doctors discovered 28 adenomas using the traditional endoscope; with Fuse, another 20 were found for an incremental find rate of 71 percent.

“Traditional endoscopes provide up to 170 degrees of forward vision,” said Dr. Ian Gralnek of Technion-Israel Institute of Technology and the department of gastroenterology at the Rambam Health Care Campus, who performed the series of patient trials with a team of researchers. “The advantage of Fuse is that it allows endoscopists to examine twice the anatomy with a wide 330-degree view. Our findings are compelling and support the data from previous studies showing the limitations of traditional endoscopes.”

EndoChoice also announced at the meeting that the Fuse system has received FDA 510(k) clearance. The company now plans to expand the system beyond the current pilot sites to more centers around the world.

For more information, visit: www.endochoice.com