Endoscopy of the pancreatic duct: value of different endoscope types.

Diagnostic pancreatoscopy was performed in 38 patients with suspected lesions by means of an endoscopic retrograde approach using two different endoscope types. A 3.1-mm endoscope, which required sphincterotomy, and an 0.8-mm ultra-thin pancreatoscope, which could be passed through a standard catheter into the pancreatic duct, were used. Both endoscope types were effective in detecting and differentiating pancreatic lesions. The advantage of the 3.1-mm pancreatosope is its ability to take biopsy specimens, thus allowing histologic verification of observations. The ultra-thin endoscope may play a role in the initial duct examination.