The oesophageal examination process – oesophageal examinations should be performed on an empty stomach whenever possible.
During endoscopic oesophageal examinations, after swallowing a local anaesthetic liquid, the patient has to swallow a thin fibre-optic instrument a few millimetres wide, through which the doctor gets an image of the oesophagus’s inner surface and can take tissue samples from any changes, or, using ultrasound, can also examine the oesophagus’s wall layers and its surroundings.
Therapeutic procedures (stopping bleeding, removal or ablation of the lining, dilation) can also be carried out with endoscopic methods. In special cases, these examinations can also be performed under intravenous sedation.
Radiological examinations require swallowing a contrast agent, which makes the swallowing process and certain changes in the lining visible.
Some functional tests also require swallowing thin instruments through which pressure or pH can be measured.
Isotope examinations require imaging under a special isotope camera after swallowing isotope-labelled test meals or substances: they are painless but take longer.
