The history of transanal endoscopic surgery

Transanal endoscopic microsurgery was pioneered by Professor Gerhard Buess at a time when surgeons were just beginning to experiment with minimally invasive technology. TEM and the other platforms that perform transanal endoscopic surgery share certain features: they use insufflated carbon dioxide, long-shafted instruments, and high-definition optics to do endoluminal surgery through a natural orifice. The main clinical experience is in removing selected rectal neoplasms, although potentially any rectal pathology can be addressed with this instrumentation. It offers distinct advantages over conventional transanal instruments and should be considered the technique of choice for rectal pathology.