Endoscopy is a nonsurgical procedure used to examine your digestive tract. Using an endoscope, a flexible tube with a light and camera attached to it, the doctor can view pictures of your digestive tract on a color TV monitor.

During an upper endoscopy (OGDS), an endoscope is easily passed through the mouth and throat and into the esophagus, allowing the doctor to view the esophagus, stomach, and upper part of the small intestine.

Similarly, endoscopes can be passed into the large intestine (colon) through the rectum to examine this area of the intestine. This procedure is called sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy depending on how far up the colon is examined.

Doctors will often recommend endoscopy to evaluate:

• Stomach pain
• Ulcers, gastritis, or difficulty swallowing
• Digestive tract bleeding
• Changes in bowel habits (chronic constipation or diarrhea)
• Polyps or growths in the colon

In addition, the doctor may use an endoscope to take a biopsy (removal of tissue) to look for the presence of disease. Endoscopy may also be used to treat a digestive tract problem. For example, the endoscope might not only detect active bleeding from an ulcer, but devices can be passed through the endoscope that can stop the bleeding. In the colon, polyps can be removed through the scope to prevent the development of colon cancer.

The Treadmill Stress Test is used to provide information about how the heart responds to exertion. It involves walking on a treadmill at increasing levels of difficulty, while your electrocardiogram, heart rate, and blood pressure are being monitored.

The doctor uses the stress test to:

• Determine if there is adequate blood flow to your heart during increasing levels of activity
• Evaluate the effectiveness of your heart medications to control angina and ischemia
• Determine the likelihood of having coronary heart disease and the need for further evaluation
• Check the effectiveness of procedures done to improve blood flow within the heart vessels in people with coronary heart disease
• Identify abnormal heart rhythms
• Assess the function of heart valves if they are not functioning properly
• Help you develop a safe exercise program