title: The Cath-Cam: a new concept in colonoscopy.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Guidewires and catheters exert less force on the gut wall than an endoscope.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To develop a guidewire-assisted device for colonoscopy.
  
  
  METHODS
  A light-weight flexible catheter illuminated with light-emitting diodes was designed to carry an ultraslim high-resolution videoendoscope of 3 mm. Tip bend stiffness was 5 times less than a colonoscope. Hinged guidewires were passed, folded, through the accessory channel. A loop could be rapidly formed to explore the lumen.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The catheter followed curves of excised pig colon and exerted significantly less force on the colon wall than a colonoscope (mean 1.6 +/- 0.23 N vs 3.0 +/- 0.37 N, P < .05; bend-radius, 80 mm). Survival studies in pigs showed that the guidewire loop could be advanced under visual control and the Cath-Cam could be advanced by using much less force than the colonoscope.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A catheter-based colonoscope with a miniature video imager reduced the force required for successful colonoscopy in pigs.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Physics, University College London, UK.
authors.forename: Gary
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Long
authors.forename: Annette
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Fritscher-Ravens
authors.forename: C Alexander
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Mosse
authors.forename: Tim
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mills
authors.forename: Paul
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Swain
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003106:Colon / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000601:surgery; D020685:Colonoscopes; D003113:Colonoscopy / Q000379:methods*; D004867:Equipment Design; D018583:Pliability; D013552:Swine; D014741:Video Recording / Q000295:instrumentation*