This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 14th, 2011 at 11:34 AM and is filed under Hot Off the Press. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
Those who have been following this blog know that accurate diagnosis is the most important aspect of planning treatment.
I have explained the importance of hysteroscopy for seeing directly into the uterus, but fewer than 10% of OB/GYN’s in the US are equipped to do hysteroscopy in an office setting. I’m hoping to change that. Last year I was approached by an engineer with a video camera the size of a pinhead, asking how we could use it in gynecology. Together, we developed a small portable hysteroscope. It consists of a small reusable handle with a screen the size of a smartphone, coupled to a sterile single-use hysteroscope utilizing a built-in high resolution camera integrated with light source.
Current hysteroscopes require an investment in thousands of dollars of equipment, including a light source, video camera, and video monitor. Care and sterilization of instruments, and setting up for hysteroscopy are time consuming and often do not fit into the schedule of a busy office. As a result, most women who need hysteroscopy are taken to the operating room, at much greater expense and inconvenience. My goal is to enable every gynecologist to do office hysteroscopy. It is important to note that this instrument currently has investigational status and has not been cleared by the FDA for commercial use.
I have been using this hysteroscope as part of an investigational study. If you would like to learn more about this, I was recently interviewed by Hope Waltman, at OBGYN.net. The following link to the interview also has a link to a video of using the hysteroscope during a clinical trial in my office. Interview at
Note: Full disclosure: I am a co-founder and shareholder in the EndoSee Corporation, which is developing the hysteroscope. — Paul Indman, M.D.
