ENDOSYSTEMS - FUTURE PERSPECTIVES FOR ENDOLUMINAL THERAPY

Endoluminal therapy is widespread among different clinical specialitie s. Endoluminal therapy of gastrointestinal disease, endovascular thera py of stenoses, and transurethral resection of the prostate are only t hree examples from this diversified medical field. Notwithstanding the impressive technical possibilities offered by contemporary products, technological advances will have a considerable impact on the further development of endoluminal therapy. New technologies, such as microsys tem technology, will bring about significant advances in both function ality and performance of endoluminal systems. Miniaturized robotic com ponents and sensor systems for analysis of tissues in situ could form part of advanced devices applied, for example, to local tumour surgery . This article describes, in brief, a scenario of an endoluminal manip ulator system and its technological platform.