Autoscopy

Autoscopy (from Greek autos - self and scopeo - I look), the direct visual examination of the laryngeal cavity and lower respiratory pathways without the aid of optical and reflecting mirrors. This method, otherwise called direct laryngoscopy, was first introduced by Kirstein (1894), who showed that by pushing the root of the tongue forward with a special spatula while simultaneously tilting the patient's head back, the right angle between the axes of the larynx and oral cavity can be sufficiently smoothed that the larynx becomes accessible for examination with the naked eye. Subsequently, Killian and Brunings replaced the flat spatula with a tube and developed the doctrine of tracheo-broncho-esophago-endoscopy. The advantages of the method are that the visible image is clear and at close range, which makes it possible to operate with direct short instruments. In recent times, the Seifert autoscope, constructed on the model of a diverging uterine mirror, has become widely used; the apparatus is convenient in that it is held automatically, provides a wide field for examination, and frees both hands of the examiner. Autoscopy should be distinguished from autolaryngoscopy (see).