Jenifer R. Lightdale, MD, MPH, Editor

Pediatric endoscopy has indeed come a long way since the early 1980s, when reports of its feasibility and diagnostic potential were just emerging from a few small centers. In 2016, gastrointestinal endoscopy is a fundamental component of health care for infants and children. Both upper and lower procedures are regularly performed, for elective and urgent indications, by thousands of certified pediatric endoscopists, in family-friendly environments specifically designed to ensure patient safety of children during endoscopy, as well as procedural quality and efficiency.

Every day, worldwide, thousands of parents provide informed consent for pediatric endoscopists to help diagnose or treat their children’s digestive disorders. These include congenital conditions of the gastrointestinal tract, such as biliary atresia and tracheoesophageal fistula, as well as disorders characterized by mucosal inflammation, including celiac disease, inflammatory bowel disease, and eosinophilic esophagitis. Unfortunately, many digestive diseases in children are not rare, and it has become an imperative for medical providers to recognize indications for referral. Just as critical may be timely recognition by pediatric gastroenterologists of indications for performing endoscopic procedures, which may be invaluable in helping children to thrive, and even saving lives.

I feel extremely fortunate to have assembled an impressive and passionate group of colleagues to provide this comprehensive review of important, current topics in pediatric endoscopy. Many are first-time authors for the Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Clinics of North America , signifying a new generation of experts. A bird’s-eye view of the list of articles demonstrates broad contributions from across North America, while also attesting to the increasing access that children have to advanced endoscopic procedures, should they require them. Fortunately, fewer children have conditions that call for the most technically advanced procedures, including deep enteroscopy, endoscopic ultrasound, and endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, leaving us still much to learn about how best to ensure their quality of care. Future studies in pediatric endoscopy will undoubtedly reflect rigorous design and big data across multicenters. We’ve come a long way, but we still have a ways to go.

I would like to thank all of the authors for their outstanding contributions to this issue of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy Clinics of North America , as well as Kerry Holland and Donald Mumford from Elsevier for their careful assistance and infinite patience in assembling it. Finally, I want to thank my father for believing that I have come far enough to take on the honor of editing it, as well as for always being willing to mentor and brainstorm, with love, about where I might go next.