[Role of endoscopy in diagnosis and therapy (author's transl)].

Gastroenterologic endoscopy has developed into a perfect diagnostic tool. All sections of the gastrointestinal tract are accessible to visual inspection. The early diagnosis of gastrointestinal cancer has become a reality. The sources of acute bleeding can be located by emergency endoscopy. The combination of endoscopy with other procedures (biopsy, radiology, ultrasonics) has opened up further essentially diagnosis possibilities. Where changes occur in polyps, small particles are not representative. Polypectomy has advanced to total biopsy. Along with this, the step from diagnostic to curative endoscopy was taken. Further milestones in this direction are endoscopic papillotomy and endoscopic hemostasis and the prevention of bleeding by the use of laser light.