A review of 938 Gastroscopic Examinations*

Abstract

Modern gastroscopy was introduced in 1932 and was received with mixed enthusiasm and skepticism. Today gastroscopy is an accepted procedure, but it is in a period of re-evaluation. Some of the early enthusiastic claims for the method have been discarded, others modified, and others verified. Except for certain problems in clinical research, gastroscopy is being used chiefly for two diagnostic purposes: (1) to examine the stomach when the clinical and roentgenologic findings do not explain the clinical picture (either negative or indeterminate findings), and (2) to confirm the roentgenologic findings of a gastric ulcer or carcinoma. It has been well demonstrated that the combination of roentgenoscopy and gastroscopy is more accurate than either method alone. If both examiners are in agreement, the clinician may be reasonably certain that the diagnosis is correct. If, however, there is disagreement, further study and observation is indicated. In such instances of disagreement it will be found that on the first examination the roent-genologist will be correct in about 50 per cent of the cases and the gastroscopist correct in about 50 per cent.

We have recently reviewed our experience covering the last 938 consecutive gastroscopic examinations.¹ Our experience is in accord with the foregoing statements and also with Templeton and Boyer² who compared the roentgenologic and gastroscopic findings in carcinoma and its benign counterparts. We were able by operation or clinical observation to follow-up 170 patients adequately. (Table 1) In this group of 170 cases both the roentgenologic and gastroscopic diagnoses at the first. . .