Non-invasive Procedure
A medical procedure is strictly defined as non-invasive when no break in the skin is created and there is no contact with the mucosa, or skin break, or internal body cavity beyond a natural or artificial body orifice. For example deep palpation and percussion is non-invasive but a rectal examination is invasive. Similarly, examination of the ear-drum or inside the nose or a wound dressing change all fall outside the strict definition of non-invasive procedure. There are many non-invasive procedures, ranging from simple observation, to specialised forms of surgery, such as radiosurgery.
For centuries, physicians have employed many simple non-invasive methods based on physical parameters in order to assess body function in health and disease (physical examination and inspection), such as pulse-taking, the auscultation of heart sounds and lung sounds (using the stethoscope), temperature examination (using thermometers), respiratory examination, peripheral vascular examination, oral examination, abdominal examination, external percussion and palpation, blood pressure measurement (using the sphygmomanometer), change in body volumes (using plethysmograph), audiometry, eye examination and many others.
The discovery of the first modern non-invasive techniques based on physical methods, electrocardiography and X-rays, dates back to the end of the 19th century. Since then, non-invasive methods – which penetrate the body nonetheless, but by electromagnetic or particle radiation rather than a scalpel – have continuously enlarged the scope of medical technology. Non-invasive techniques commonly used for diagnosis and therapy include the following:
Read more about this topic: Invasiveness Of Surgical Procedures