NHS is among the first in the region to use a new medical technology — capsule endoscope — that allows physicians to see what no one has been able to fully capture before — the entire length of the human small intestine. NHS began offering the diagnostic procedure in mid-November.
The M2A Capsule Endoscope is a non-invasive option for diagnosis of certain small intestine disorders such as obscure bleeding, Crohn’s Disease, malabsorption or Celiac Disease and intestinal tumors.
Previously, many of these conditions went undiagnosed, or were treated with trial and error due to the limited diagnostic options available for this region of the body. Currently there is not a scope long enough to view the entire length of the small intestine.
The procedure
The M2A Capsule Endoscope is not the appropriate diagnostic tool for all gastrointestinal patients. Patients must first meet specific guidelines and be referred by their attending physician.
The M2A imaging capsule is swallowed by the patient and aided by the natural movement of the bowel as it passes through the gastrointestinal tract. The capsule transmits video signals, as many as 50,000 pictures during the seven-hour procedure, which are stored in the receiving unit worn on a belt around the patient’s waist. The signals enable the system to trace the physical course of the capsule’s progress. The capsule is excreted naturally out the body.
At the end of the procedure, the patient returns the belt to the physician’s office. The images are then downloaded onto a computer workstation and viewed by the physician.
The size of a vitaminHelping in the diagnosis
The capsule endoscope provides better visualization and accessibility than the current endoscope procedure, said Renee Young, M.D., NHS/UNMC gastroenterology & hepatology program director. “The capsule endoscope should help in the diagnosis of small bowel diseases, such as obscure site bleeding, tumors and inflammatory bowel diseases,” she said. “It will provide patients with a unique diagnostic modality and will provide research opportunities as well.”
Kenneth Maxwell, M.D., an Internal Medicine Associates/NHS gastroenterologist, agrees with Dr. Young. “Diseases of the small intestine have often been difficult to diagnose,” he said. “This new technology will be extremely useful in the diagnosis of chronic gastrointestinal blood loss in carefully selected cases.”
Given Diagnostic System, an Israel-based diagnostic company, produces the M2A Capsule Endoscope. The company’s North American headquarters is in Atlanta.