Clin Endosc.  2012 Mar;45(1):62-66. 10.5946/ce.2012.45.1.62.

Performance and Cost of Disposable Biopsy Forceps in Upper Gastrointestinal Endoscopy: Comparison with Reusable Biopsy Forceps

• Lim CH
• Choi MG
• Kim WC
• Kim JS
• Cho YK
• Park JM
• Lee IS
• Kim SW
• Choi KY
• Chung IS

• KMID: 2048833
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.5946/ce.2012.45.1.62

Abstract

BACKGROUND/AIMS
It is believed that disposable biopsy forceps are more costly than reusable biopsy forceps. In this study, we evaluated performance and cost of disposable forceps versus reusable forceps in esophagogastroduodenoscopic biopsy.
METHODS
Between October 2009 and July 2010, we enrolled 200 patients undergoing esophagogastroduodenoscopic biopsy at Seoul St. Mary's Hospital. Biopsies were performed with 100 disposable or 5 reusable forceps by random assignment. Seventy-five additional patients were studied to estimate durability of reusable forceps. The assisting nurses estimated the performance of the forceps. The evaluation of costs included purchase prices and reprocessing costs. The adequacy of the sample was estimated according to the diameter of the obtained tissue.
RESULTS
Performance of disposable forceps was estimated as excellent in 97.0%, good in 2.0% and adequate in 1.0%. Reusable forceps were estimated as excellent in 36.0%, good in 36.0%, adequate in 25.1% and inadequate in 2.9%. The performance of reusable forceps declined with the number of uses. The reprocessing cost of reusable forceps for one biopsy session was calculated as 8,021won. The adequacy of the sample was excellent for both forceps.
CONCLUSIONS
Disposable forceps showed excellent performance. Considering the reprocessing costs of reusable forceps, usage of disposable forceps with a low price should be considered.

Keyword

Endoscopy; Biopsy; Disposable equipment; Costs and cost analysis

MeSH Terms

Biopsy
Costs and Cost Analysis
Disposable Equipment
Endoscopy
Humans
Surgical Instruments

Figure

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  Fig. 1 Performance of reusable biopsy forceps according to number of uses.

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  Fig. 2 Mean score of performance of the reusable biopsy forceps according to number of uses.

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  Fig. 3 Cost per use of reusable biopsy forceps with the number of uses.

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  Fig. 4 Size of obtained samples.

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