And how did the wireless high tech method measure up?ĭr. And it turns out that the capsule method is much more sensitive as a way of diagnosing Crohn's Disease than the enterascopes, that is the visual things that doctors might pass up or down through a patient, in this case pass up through a patient.īRAND: And Syd, I understand there was a recent study in Berlin that compared this new high tech method of diagnosing Crohn's Disease with the regular method. They often have a lot of diarrhea and abdominal pain. It's really a very difficult disease in a lot of ways. And it turns out that these swallowed capsules are one the best ways of identifying bleeding sites.īut also, there's a disease called Crohn's Disease, which causes a lot of misery. You might have a patient who has some gastrointestinal bleeding, which might be a sign of a polyp or it might be a sign of inflammation of the lining of the bowel. SPIESEL: Well, you're looking for diseases that affect the inside of the intestine. Although in the studies that were done, well, it always sort of either washed out or it could be retrieved very easily.īRAND: Well, why would you need to be rooting around in someone's intestines? What are you looking for?ĭr. Occasionally, in patients who have strictures, tightenings of the intestine as a result of illness, it, there have been some times when it's gotten stuck. As it drifts south through the patient it just keeps running until the battery runs out, which is about eight hours later, which in most patients it's traveled the full length of the small intestine.ĭr. About two images a second.Īnd the patient wears a kind of pack on their belt that records all of this. And as soon as the patient swallows it, it gets activated and the disposable camera starts to transmit images of the inside of the intestines. And believe it or not, it contains a video camera, four incredibly tiny little teensy light sources, a television transmitter and a battery. Imagine something that is, looks like and is about the same shape as and the same size as a large vitamin capsule. SYDNEY SPIESEL (Medical Columnist, Slate): This new technology, frankly, knocks me out. Spiesel spoke earlier with my colleague Madeleine Brand. Sydney Spiesel, medical columnist for the online magazine Slate, says these work better than the periscope-like cameras that are usually used to examine the intestines. Well, now there's another development called wireless capsule endoscopes. If you haven't had the occasion to sample the procedure yet you'll know what I mean when you get a little older.

The wonders of modern medicine often do cost us a little something in personal dignity.

Video the human body