Envisioning human health
A quick look at Olympus's pioneering role in the development of minimally invasive diagnostic and therapeutic medical tools
A fiberscope in use
One day, over six decades ago, a young doctor came to Olympus with an unusual request. "Can you make a camera that will let me photograph the inside of a patient's stomach?" he asked. Undeterred by the fact that this had never been done before, Olympus engineers rose to the challenge, and the world's first gastrocamera was born.
Endoscopic imaging tools have contributed to people's health and happiness since 1950, when Olympus introduced the world's first practical gastrocamera. Today, Olympus has grown to be a leader in the field, supplying 70% of the gastrointestinal endoscopes used around the world. In fact, Olympus endoscopes are now available in an array of different configurations, minimizing the need for invasive surgical procedures that put a burden on patients, and assisting doctors in the early diagnosis and treatment of a wide range of diseases.
The 60-year history of endoscopic imaging has been marked by three distinct stages of advance.
1950
- The invention of the world's first practical gastrocamera makes it possible to photograph the inside of a living person's stomach for the first time.
1970s
- The introduction of fiberscopes enables doctors to observe the interior of the stomach in real time.
- Specialized endoscopes are developed for the observation of many different organs, including the esophagus, duodenum, colon, bronchus, and gallbladder.
- Endoscopes are equipped with tools that enable them to be used not only to observe and diagnose, but also to remove polyps, stop bleeding, and perform other therapeutic procedures.
1985
- The development of the video endoscope enables live images to be displayed on a video monitor so that other doctors and medical professionals can observe diagnostic and therapeutic procedures as they are being performed.
- The development of advanced digital image processing technologies expands the diagnostic potential of endoscopic imaging.
Today, Olympus continues to improve endoscopes, making them thinner and more flexible to further reduce the burden on patients. In the quest for minimally invasive medical treatments and improved patient quality of life, it is also working to develop and improve NBI (Narrow Band Imaging) technologies that can aid early diagnosis by making it easier for doctors to indentify cancerous lesions and other precursor symptoms of potentially life-threatening disease.
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