Endoscopy Insights Podcast

How Effective is Flexible Ureteroscope Reprocessing?

"I think the FDA's announcement has prompted us to look at that process and see if there are opportunities where we can tighten or more standardize the process to ensure the scopes are being cleaned to a certain metric."

When the U.S. Food and Drug Administration released a letter to healthcare providers in April 2021 announcing its investigation into numerous medical device reports involving reprocessed urological endoscopes, Dr. Seth Bechis and his colleagues set out to learn more about reprocessing and its effectiveness.

They focused on flexible ureteroscopes in their research and found that, while studies assessing the effectiveness of on these specific scopes is limited, their findings line up with recent news about other flexible endoscopes — that a surprising number still harbor protein and other debris even after reprocessing, raising patient safety concerns.

Their findings were published in the journal Urology. We caught up with Dr. Bechis at the American Urological Association’s annual convention in New Orleans to talk more about the study.

Dr. Bechis is a board-certified urologist and member of the comprehensive Kidney Stone Center at UC San Diego Health. He's also an Ambu consultant.

Show notes:

------------------------

Endoscopy Insights is a podcast devoted to conversations with thought leaders in flexible and single-use endoscopy. In each episode we’ll explore the ways different clinical and technological innovations are moving the field of endoscopy forward.       

Endoscopy Insights is brought to you by Single-Use Endoscopy, part of the Ambu Learning Center. Ambu has been bringing healthcare solutions of the future to life since 1937.

Subscribe to the Endoscopy Insights Podcast

          

Click here to view all episodes

More Endoscopy Insights Episdoes
The State of Bladder Cancer Awareness and Research
Endoscopy Insights Podcast
Bladder cancer is the sixth most common cancer diagnosed annually in the U.S., according to the National Library of Medicine. Dr. Yair Lotan joins us again to discuss the state of bladder cancer awareness and research.
The FDA’s Safety Communication Update for Reprocessing Bronchoscopes
Endoscopy Insights Podcast
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently updated a safety communication on reprocessing flexible bronchoscopes. To break down this announcement and what it means, we talked to Dr. Hudson Garrett, an infection prevention and control expert.
The Evolution of Single-Use Urologic Endoscopy
Endoscopy Insights Podcast
Dr. Michael Lipkin discusses a recent study that found that a new single-use cystoscope demonstrated superior flexion and comparable optics to the reusable scopes already being used in a hospital urology department.
More From Single-Use Endoscopy
How Much Does It Really Cost to Own Endoscopes?

Value-Based Care

Ownership costs are hidden in capital accounts, expensive service contracts and repair agreements that are capitated, a medical device industry executive writes.

How to Stop the Cycle of ‘Reactive Repairs’ on Endoscopes

Prevention Challenges

They are costly, add stress for staff and put patients at risk.

Study Evaluates Single-Use Gastroscope Feasibility in Evaluating, Treating Upper GI Bleeding

Emerging Technologies

Single-use duodenoscopes are already common for ERCP, but what about gastroscopes and EGD?