Interventional Endoscopy Care for Children with Gastrointestinal Conditions
If your child needs an interventional endoscopy procedure, you can find support at Cincinnati Children’s from a team that cares for kids every day. As part of the nation’s top-ranked pediatric gastroenterology and GI surgery program, the Interventional Endoscopy Center at Cincinnati Children’s is one of only a few programs in the country to offer these services for children.
Interventional endoscopy frequently combines endoscopy with imaging. Doctors use this minimally invasive way to test for and treat many conditions that affect a child’s gastrointestinal (GI) system. Pediatric interventional endoscopy helps doctors access parts of your child’s GI tract that are harder to reach with open surgery. It works because, instead of making an incision in the skin to access the GI tract, a specialist guides a flexible endoscope through a natural opening in the body. With interventional endoscopy, most children feel less pain and recover faster than with invasive surgical methods.
Why Choose Us
Expert Care from Pediatric Specialists
Endoscopists at Cincinnati Children’s have the highest level of advanced training and experience to safely perform interventional endoscopic procedures on children. This specialization is required because children with GI conditions have unique healthcare needs. Our board-certified pediatric gastroenterologists include David Vitale, MD, and Garrett Sprague, MD, who are both fellowship-trained in advanced endoscopy.
The Interventional Endoscopy Center also has special equipment that can be used for children of all ages, including newborns. And your child will benefit from immediate access to other specialty providers when needed, including developmental-behavioral pediatricians and child-life specialists.
Minimally Invasive Procedures, Specialized for Children
Our services include highly specialized procedures that most pediatric or adult hospitals don’t perform. The procedures include:
- Pediatric double-balloon enteroscopy
- Pediatric endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP)
- Pediatric endoscopic ultrasound (EUS)
The Interventional Endoscopy Center skillfully performs these minimally invasive procedures for children of all ages. Less-invasive procedures mean less pain and downtime for your child.
‘One-Stop’ Multidisciplinary Care
At Cincinnati Children’s, you don’t need to travel from doctor to doctor for your child’s care. Our care team sees patients together in one location, providing the highest level of collaboration and coordination.
When caring for children with complex medical needs, the Interventional Endoscopy Center team works closely with other pediatric specialty teams throughout Cincinnati Children’s, including:
- Cancer and Blood Diseases Institute
- Liver Care Center
- Pancreas Care Center, recognized as a National Pancreas Foundation (NPF) Center of Excellence
- Pediatric General and Thoracic Surgery
Coordinated Patient and Family Experience
We’re committed to providing prompt access to care for your child in a way that’s convenient for you. You can make appointments across multiple specialties that are coordinated in one location and often in one visit. Cincinnati Children’s specialists work closely with your child’s primary care provider to coordinate care and follow-ups. Our center also offers virtual visits for children who live in Ohio and Kentucky.
For children receiving care at another institution, we offer online second opinions so you can find answers more quickly.
Leading-Edge Research to Improve Care for Children
Our team joins in research to learn about new ways to safely and effectively use pediatric interventional endoscopy. Patients may qualify for clinical research studies that let them take part in experimental tests and therapies that other hospitals don’t have.
