Advanced Endoscopy

Multidisciplinary Care for Digestive Diseases

Our specialists treat a variety of digestive diseases with the goal of helping patients feel normal again.

UT Southwestern Medical Center’s multidisciplinary team of digestive and liver disease specialists uses state-of-the-art endoscopic techniques to accurately diagnose and expertly treat a range of digestive and liver conditions.

A specialty group within the Division of Digestive and Liver Diseases, the UT Southwestern Interventional Endoscopy Team performs advanced endoscopic procedures to diagnose and treat disorders of the pancreas, bile ducts, esophagus, and colon.

Our advanced endoscopists use sophisticated tools to clearly see abnormalities that might not be easily visible with standard imaging studies.

Endoscopic Expertise Using a Multidisciplinary Approach

Our interventional endoscopists combine their technical expertise, state-of-the-art technology, and advanced imaging to deliver leading-edge, minimally invasive care. To ensure each patient’s needs are met, they partner with a multidisciplinary team that includes surgeons, oncologists, hepatologists, radiation oncologists, and radiologists.

Our Pancreatic Cancer Prevention Program, which closely follows patients who are at a high risk for the development of pancreatic cancer, is one example of our multidisciplinary approach that’s making a difference in patients’ lives.

Conditions We Diagnose and Treat

Interventional endoscopy can be used to screen for, diagnose, stage, manage, and treat a variety of gastrointestinal conditions, including:

Colon polyps and colon cancer, including the resection of colon polyps
Complications from bariatric surgery
Diseases of the esophagus, such as achalasia, Barrett’s esophagus, dysplasia, and esophageal cancer
Biliary tract disorders, such as gallstones, cholangiocarcinoma, and strictures of the bile duct
Pancreatic diseases, such as acute and chronic pancreatitis, pancreatic cysts, pancreatic cancer, and pancreas divisum

Interventional endoscopy is also used to prevent cancer by removing growths (polyps) before they become cancerous.

Advanced Endoscopy Procedures

Our expert interventional endoscopists perform a variety of state-of-the-art endoscopic procedures, including:

Argon plasma coagulation hemostases of bleeding lesions
Biliary and pancreatic duct endoscopy (cholangioscopy and pancreatoscopy)
Celiac nerve block to treat pancreatic pain
Endoscopic management after gastric bypass surgery
Endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR) and ablation to remove and treat early tumors in the gastrointestinal tract
Endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP) for benign and malignant disease
Endoscopic suturing, in which the endoscope is equipped with a small stitching device, which can be used to close defects throughout the GI tract
Endoscopic therapies for Barrett’s esophagus, including radiofrequency ablation and endoscopic resection
Endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) for staging and fine-needle aspiration
EUS to diagnose and stage cancers of the gastrointestinal tract, bile ducts, and pancreas
Pancreatic pseudocyst drainage
Stenting of the esophagus, small bowel, and colon

Clinical Trials

UT Southwestern takes part in a number of clinical trials aimed at advancing endoscopic techniques and improving patient outcomes. Clinical trials allow eligible patients to access promising new therapies that might not be available at other centers.

Patients should speak with their doctors to find out if participation in a clinical trial might be right for them.