October 10, 2012 — Olympus announced the launch of its U.S. Food and Drug Administration (F.D.A.)-cleared and world's only forward-viewing curvilinear ultrasound gastrovideoscope.
The design of Olympus' endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) scope provides a reduced distal tip length. The combination of a shorter tip with wider angulation capabilities (180 degrees up) delivers enhanced maneuverability and handling. In addition, the scope's straight channel enables direct or head-on delivery of therapeutic devices to the target site, potentially providing easier access to regions of interest.
The scope's enhanced maneuverability and handling offers the potential to improve visualization of fundus diseases. In addition, an auxiliary water jet potentially provides better acoustic coupling as well as savings in accessory costs by eliminating the need for a balloon.
"It is the first true 'hybrid' ultrasound endoscope, enabling both ultrasound and endoscopy-guided interventions with the same instrument. This will facilitate existing EUS-guided therapies, such as pseudocyst drainage, as well as enable new EUS-guided treatments,” said Kenneth Binmoeller, M.D. and director of the interventional endoscopy service at California Pacific Medical Center.
The TGF-UC180J is powered by the ProSound F75 Ultrasound Imaging Platform, which aids in more accurate diagnosis of diseases and cancers of the gastrointestinal (GI) track and surrounding organs. The scope is also backward compatible with prior generation processors, including the Olympus EU-ME1 and Hitachi Aloka SSD-?10.
"We are pleased to introduce this newest advance in EUS technology," said Luke Calcraft, President of the Medical Systems Group at Olympus Corporation of the Americas. "The TGF-UC180J has the potential to pave the way for new EUS-guided treatments and assist healthcare facilities in their efforts to meet the triple aim of Affordable Care through advanced diagnostic and therapeutic capabilities, clinical and cost efficiencies, and less invasive interventions for treatment of diseases and cancers in the GI tract."
The demand for minimally invasive procedures continues to grow with the introduction of more advanced technologies. Over 250,000 EUS outpatient procedures were performed in the United States in 2011 (Truven Health[i]) with a 6 percent compound annual growth rate for the next five years (The Advisory Board Company).
The advanced design of the TGF-UC180J scope can help healthcare providers address the key requirements of healthcare reform, including:
- Increased quality of care — EUS provides easy identification and more accurate staging of diseases and cancers in the GI tract.
- Decreased costs — Interventional procedures can be performed in the GI suite, which saves operating room (OR) time. In addition, the forward-viewing scope does not require a balloon, reducing accessory expenditures.
- Enhanced patient satisfaction — EUS offers patients a less invasive treatment compared to surgical interventions, and procedure times may be shorter.
The TGF-UC180J ultrasound gastrovideoscope will be showcased October 13-15 at the American College of Gastroenterology Annual Scientific Meeting (ACG 2013), which will be held in San Diego.
References
[i] Truven Health Analytics Inc., Ann Arbor, Michigan ("Truven Health"). Any analysis, interpretation or conclusion based on these data is solely that of the authors and Truven Health disclaims responsibility for any such analysis, interpretation or conclusion.
For more information: www.medical.olympusaamerica.com
November 03, 2025 
