In November 2024, a disposable vascular endoscope (MicroAngioscope) manufactured by Canada-based Vena Medical was used for the first time on a patient with recurrent stroke. This marked the world's first stroke treatment case via intravascular endoscopy. The endoscope enables real-time full-color imaging, advancing stroke treatment from experimental exploration to precise clinical application—a boon for humanity.

This surgical method was developed with the advent of ultra-fine subscopes. It uses a 2.8mm biliary (appendiceal) subscope, passed through the working channel of a colonoscope, to perform direct visualization and irrigation for appendicitis treatment. The technique was first proposed internationally and clinically applied in 2012 by the team led by Professor Liu Bingrong from the Second Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University (now the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University). In 2010, inspired by Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), Professor Liu Bingrong put forward the concept of ERAT. This natural orifice transluminal therapy, featuring ultra-minimally invasive procedures, made appendiceal preservation possible.

This technique adopts a 13Fr large instrument channel (4.3mm) and uses 3mm surgical instruments (such as scissors, grasping forceps, and needle holders) to suture the Mirena intrauterine device (IUD) or fix the GyneFix IUD to the uterine myometrium, solving the problem of Mirena IUD displacement. The HEOS cold-knife hysteroscopic system was developed by France-based Olympus. It integrates the design concept of laparoscopic instruments and expands the indications for hysteroscopic surgery. Innovations by Chinese teams (e.g., those led by Professors Tong Jinyi and Xu Dabao) have driven the global development of this technology. Currently, multiple domestic brands in China manufacture such cold-knife hysteroscopes.

The SpyGlass cholangioscope (biliary subscope) was first developed by Boston Scientific in 2006 and approved for clinical use by the U.S. FDA in November 2006. China gradually began to popularize the technology after 2013, but its widespread adoption was hindered by the high cost of subscope consumables at that time. Now, with the emergence of Chinese-manufactured products, the technology is accelerating in popularity across the country. The SpyGlass technology has overcome the blind spots of traditional ERCP, ushering in an era of "direct visualization and precision" for the diagnosis and treatment of biliary and pancreatic duct diseases. It is particularly suitable for minimally invasive treatment of complex cases.

Its clinical application began in 1990 and has gradually matured with the advancement of holmium laser and digital technologies. Currently, it has become one of the core minimally invasive treatment technologies for urinary calculi.

Its clinical application started in 1976, when it was first successfully performed by Fernström and Johansson. Over the following decades, the technique has been continuously optimized, leading to the development of small-caliber, large-channel technology with controllable negative pressure.

It is a minimally invasive technology that establishes access through percutaneous transhepatic puncture and uses a rigid cholangioscope for direct visualization and treatment of biliary diseases. In 1974, Professor Takada from Japan first proposed the concept of PTCS, combining Percutaneous Transhepatic Cholangi Drainage (PTCD) with cholangioscopy for the diagnosis and treatment of biliary diseases. In 1985, Professor Zhang Baoshan from China introduced the PTCS technology and applied it clinically, promoting the development of this technology in China. Combining it with controllable negative-pressure suction technology may increase the stone extraction speed.