Doctors at Newcastle Hospitals are today (Friday 8 March) carrying out live medical procedures using a camera inside the body to broadcast to a global conference in Italy.
The team of consultant gastroenterologists led by Professor Kofi Oppong is representing the UK in the transmission from theatres at the Freeman Hospital, part of Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
The two-day EURO-EUS event is taking place in Milan and brings together delegates from around the world specialising in endoscopic ultrasound to share the lasted advances and innovations with expert faculty from Italy the UK, America, Ecuador, India, Belgium and Hong Kong.
Live broadcast of medical procedures has gained popularity in recent decades at conferences and live digital learning events as an opportunity for experts to demonstrate novel techniques and emerging technology in complex procedures such as robotic, laparoscopic or endoscopic techniques.
During an endoscopic ultrasound an endoscopist uses a long flexible tube called an endoscope with a tiny camera and ultrasound probe at its tip, which uses high frequency sound waves to create a picture of the inside of the body. The procedure can be used to both diagnose and help in the treatment of disease.
In today’s virtual live link Professor Oppong is facilitating the session with colleagues Dr Manu Nayar and Dr John Leeds carrying out procedures for patients who have consented and remain anonymous during the session.
The team specialises in disease of the gall bladder, biliary ducts and pancreas and Professor Oppong helped to set up the pancreatic endoscopic ultrasound service at Newcastle Hospitals over two decades ago.
“We have one of the largest centres in the country in terms of the number of procedures we do. There is lots of innovation and research in this area and we are able to use technology to broadcast advanced procedures to a live professional audience,” he said.
“Our procedures include carrying out a scan and biopsy of lumps in the pancreas to take a sample of tissue to make a diagnosis. We can also use the technology to place stents in infected gall bladders to drain them when surgery is not possible, a specialist procedure which we are the only endoscopists carrying out in the region.”
He added: “We are demonstrating on the international stage that we are at the forefront of endoscopy for these patients, developing minimally invasive techniques which prevent the need for full operations meaning less risk of complications and quicker recovery.”
ENDS
