Official Journal of the British Society for Gynaecological Endoscopy, the European Society for Gynaecological Endoscopy, the International Society for Gynecologic Endoscopy, the Australian Gynaecological Endoscopy Society, the Hong Kong Gynaecological Endoscopy Society, the Italian Society for Gynaecological Endoscopy. Diagnostic laparoscopy is now a standard investigative tool in the field of gynaecology, and the potential of operative laparoscopy with conventional instruments or laser are threatening to make many laparotomies procedures of the past. Similarly, there is increasing evidence of the value of diagnostic hysteroscopy in the management of abnormal bleeding, subfertility and uterine malignancy, and in years to come operative hysteroscopy may well replace most hysterectomies.