Barberton Citizens Hospital Introduces New Double-Balloon Endoscopy (DBE) Procedure

BARBERTON, Ohio, Aug. 9 /PRNewswire/ -- Barberton Citizens Hospital is the first, and to date, the only hospital in Ohio to perform a revolutionary procedure to examine the entire small intestine. Dr. Ghulam Mir, medical director of the Digestive Diseases and Endoscopy Center, and two colleagues, Drs. Adnan Ahmad and Shameem Ahmed, are the only physicians in Ohio qualified to perform the procedure. The treatment gives patients a more thorough examination, less-invasive treatment and a shorter hospital stay.

The Fujinon Double Balloon Electronic Enteroscopy System is a new innovation that allows not only diagnosis but also treatment of the entire small intestine. Using specially engineered balloons and an over-tube, the endoscope allows the physician to navigate, examine and treat the entire small bowel with minimal risk of injury. Until now, a smooth, minimally invasive examination of the entire small intestine has not been possible.

The new technology gives physicians unprecedented access to every centimeter of the small intestine, the most difficult organ to examine in the gastrointestinal tract. Like conventional endoscopy, double-balloon endoscopy allows biopsies and treatment of the small bowel to be performed with precision.

The procedure broadens the treatment options available to patients at Barberton Citizens Hospital. The hospital also offers a full range of traditional and advanced endoscopy services to meet the needs of each patient.

Barberton Citizens Hospital is a 311-bed, general acute care community hospital that offers inpatient services in the clinical areas of medicine, surgery, cardiology, critical care, extended care, psychiatry, oncology, emergency medicine, obstetrics and physical rehabilitation. It also provides many outpatient services and community outreach programs. The hospital offers a Family Practice Residency program and is a major teaching hospital with the Northeast Ohio Universities College of Medicine. Barberton Citizens Hospital is affiliated with Triad Hospitals, Inc., of Plano, Texas. The hospital is located just minutes west of Akron and less than an hour south of Cleveland.