Smartphone-Based Endoscope System for Advanced Point-of-Care Diagnostics: Feasibility Study

Abstract

BackgroundEndoscopic technique is often applied for the diagnosis of diseases affecting internal organs and image-guidance of surgical procedures. Although the endoscope has become an indispensable tool in the clinic, its utility has been limited to medical offices or operating rooms because of the large size of its ancillary devices. In addition, the basic design and imaging capability of the system have remained relatively unchanged for decades.ObjectiveThe objective of this study was to develop a smartphone-based endoscope system capable of advanced endoscopic functionalities in a compact size and at an affordable cost and to demonstrate its feasibility of point-of-care through human subject imaging.MethodsWe developed and designed to set up a smartphone-based endoscope system, incorporating a portable light source, relay-lens, custom adapter, and homebuilt Android app. We attached three different types of existing rigid or flexible endoscopic probes to our system and captured the endoscopic images using the homebuilt app. Both smartphone-based endoscope system and commercialized clinical endoscope system were utilized to compare the imaging quality and performance. Connecting the head-mounted display (HMD) wirelessly, the smartphone-based endoscope system could superimpose an endoscopic image to real-world view.ResultsA total of 15 volunteers who were accepted into our study were captured using our smartphone-based endoscope system, as well as the commercialized clinical endoscope system. It was found that the imaging performance of our device had acceptable quality compared with that of the conventional endoscope system in the clinical setting. In addition, images captured from the HMD used in the smartphone-based endoscope system improved eye-hand coordination between the manipulating site and the smartphone screen, which in turn reduced spatial disorientation.ConclusionsThe performance of our endoscope system was evaluated against a commercial system in routine otolaryngology examinations. We also demonstrated and evaluated the feasibility of conducting endoscopic procedures through a custom HMD.

A review of smartphone point‐of‐care adapter design

“…As shown in Figure C, Chatzipapas et al used commercial adapters (Karl Storz and ClearSCOPE) with a smartphone and a light source to perform laparoscopy; the work was designed for emergency departments and decision making regarding whether to perform “open” or “laparoscopic” procedures, and the results for 17 patients diagnosed and treated properly were astonishing. As shown in Figure D, an endoscope system was realized using a smartphone as an imaging sensor and a display suitable for the POC diagnostics, showing its importance in terms of mobility and flexibility. The smartphone endoscope can provide sufficient imaging performance as a diagnostic tool in a wide range of clinical and nonclinical settings.…”

“…Surgical treatment applications of smartphone adapter. (A) Endoscopy Support Services ClearSCOPE; (B) Karl Storz Smart Scope; (C) Portable endoscope device, by Chatzipapas et al, adopted with permission from Elsevier Publishing; (D) Smartphone‐based endoscope system setup, by Bae et al, under the Creative Commons Attribution License; (E) Photographs showing use of the iPhone and neuroendoscope, by Mandel et al, © copyright AANS 2018; (F) Mobile endoscope adapter (ClearSCOPE; Clearwater Clinical Limited, Ottawa, Canada)…”

Cost-Effective Smartphone-Based Articulable Endoscope Systems for Developing Countries: Instrument Validation Study

“…The potential of portable smartphone-integrated medical devices involving endoscopes attached to the built-in camera of a smartphone has been discussed [ 29 , 30 ]. Using both rigid and flexible endoscopes, images are successfully captured [ 29 ].…”

“…The potential of portable smartphone-integrated medical devices involving endoscopes attached to the built-in camera of a smartphone has been discussed [ 29 , 30 ]. Using both rigid and flexible endoscopes, images are successfully captured [ 29 ]. Although their endoscope system is easy to manufacture, portable, and cheaper than conventional one, the device proposed in this study has several advantages over the devices of Bae et al [ 29 ].…”

Improvise, Adapt, Overcome: mobile phone LED used as a light source for cystoscopy and resection of posterior urethral valves in a low-cost setting

“…Portable or hand-held light sources are a technology which has been brought to market, albeit these are still in the early stages of commercialization and certainly have not reached our health care colleagues in LMICs [1,2]. This improvised light source, using readily available technology, seems to be adequate to perform simple paediatric cystoscopy in any health care setting.…”