(Alton, IL) – A new specialized procedure to detect cancer and other gastrointestinal conditions is now being offered at Saint Anthony’s Health Center, saving area residents a trip to Missouri hospitals. Saint Anthony’s recently acquired the Endoscopic Ultrasound (EUS) technology and is the only facility in the Metro East area that offers the service and has the physician and staff trained to conduct the advanced procedure.
Naeem Aslam, M.D., a board certified gastroenterologist who joined Saint Anthony’s Physician Group last fall, has extensive training in EUS, which combines endoscopy and ultrasound into one procedure, resulting in high quality images of internal organs.
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"An endoscopic ultrasound can provide very precise staging and can even detect tumors when other imaging modalities have been unable to provide a diagnosis," says Dr. Aslam.
Using a flexible tube with an ultrasound device on its tip, Dr. Aslam is able to examine esophageal and stomach linings, as well as the walls of the esophagus, stomach, colon and rectum. A minimally invasive procedure, EUS is also used to study other organs near the gastrointestinal tract, including lungs, liver, gall bladder and pancreas, as well as lymph nodes and blood vessels.
A biopsy may also be performed with the EUS technology.
The $400,000 EUS technology is the latest in Saint Anthony’s investment in medical and information technology. Over the past 18 months, Saint Anthony’s has added a new Heart Center with an advanced cardiac catheterization laboratory, digital mammography and bone density technology, digital radiology, hospital-wide patient telemetry and new laboratory information system. In addition, the health system has remodeled its emergency services and transitioned the acute rehab unit on the Saint Clare’s campus to an all-private room facility.
For more information about Dr. Aslam and EUS, call 618-465-2761.
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