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Journey Through the
Center of . . . My Body?
Tiny camera pill helps doctors see
inside the digestive tract
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Remember that old sci-fi movie
where people were shrunk to a miniscule size and then traveled
through a human body in a tiny submarine? While that way of
looking inside the human body will probably remain a fantasy,
doctors are now able to use cameras so small that patients can
swallow them in a pill. The result: images taken inside the
gastrointestinal tract in a procedure known as capsule endoscopy.
The tiny camera is known as the
PillCam, and it’s about the size of a large vitamin pill. The
PillCam is enabling doctors to view parts of the intestine that
previously could only be seen with X-rays. Another version of
the PillCam is designed to view the esophagus as an alternative
to endoscopy. As the pill cameras pass through the intestine or
esophagus, they take thousands of images to help doctors
diagnose conditions that previously required more invasive and
uncomfortable procedures. |
Todd Sheer, MD |
“Over 15,000 people are expected to die of esophageal cancer in
2009,” says
Todd Sheer, M.D., a
gastroenterologist at The
Austin Diagnostic Clinic (ADC). “Many people don’t get screened
for cancers of the digestive system because they’re afraid the
screening will be uncomfortable. Now we have a diagnostic tool
that is as simple as swallowing a pill.”
Clinics and hospitals in the U.S. have been using capsule
endoscopy since it was approved by the Federal Drug
Administration (FDA) about eight years ago. But now more and
more healthcare professionals have begun to use the procedure,
which is showing a higher success rate than other testing
methods in detecting abnormalities.
To prepare, patients are asked to fast for about 12 hours prior
to the procedure to make sure that the digestive tract is clean
to enable clear images. Sometimes, doctors will ask patients to
take a laxative to help clean the digestive tract. Patients may
also be asked to stop taking certain medications, and are
supposed to take it easy and avoid strenuous activity while the
camera moves through the body.
Patients swallow the PillCam with a glass of water at the
doctor’s office, and then are allowed to go home. As the pill
moves through the digestive tract, it transmits images to a
recording device worn around the patient’s waist. The recording
device is worn for about eight hours, and then returned to the
physician’s office so the images can be downloaded. The camera
passes out of the patient’s body in one or two days. The camera
doesn’t have to be returned.
“I’ve been using capsule endoscopy successfully for several
years,” says Dr. Sheer. “This is a convenient procedure that
doesn’t require sedation and doesn’t interrupt a patient’s
life.”
The camera pill is used to diagnose conditions such as
unexplained bleeding, Crohn’s disease, tumors, and precancerous
changes to the esophagus caused by gastroesophageal reflux
disease (GERD).
“Previously, we could view the upper esophagus with endoscopy,
but it was difficult to visualize the small bowel with standard
endoscopy,” explains Dr. Sheer. “There was a section in the
middle of the digestive tract that we couldn’t reach. Now, we
can use this procedure to view the section that used to be
visible only by X-ray.” |
Todd Sheer, M.D., is a
board-certified gastroenterologist at The Austin Diagnostic
Clinic, a multi-specialty clinic with more than 120 physicians
representing 24 medical specialties at six locations throughout
Austin and Central Texas. Visit
www.adclinic.com or call
512-901-1111.
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