Capsule Endoscopy
Capsule Endoscopy
Capsule endoscopy is a procedure that uses a tiny wireless camera to take pictures of your digestive tract. A capsule endoscopy camera sits inside a vitamin-size capsule you swallow. As the capsule travels through your digestive tract, the camera takes thousands of pictures that are transmitted to a recorder you wear on a belt around your waist.
Capsule endoscopy helps doctors see inside your small intestine — an area that isn’t easily reached with more-traditional endoscopy procedures. Traditional endoscopy involves passing a long, flexible tube equipped with a video camera down your throat or through your rectum.
Your doctor might recommend a capsule endoscopy procedure to:
- Find the cause of gastrointestinal bleeding. The most common reason for doing capsule endoscopy is to explore unexplained bleeding in the small intestine.
- Diagnose inflammatory bowel diseases, such as Crohn’s disease. Capsule endoscopy can reveal areas of inflammation in the small intestine.
- Diagnose cancer. Capsule endoscopy can show tumors in the small intestine or other parts of the digestive tract.
- Diagnose celiac disease. Capsule endoscopy is sometimes used in diagnosing and monitoring this immune reaction to eating gluten.
- Examine your esophagus. Capsule endoscopy has also been approved to evaluate the muscular tube that connects your mouth and your stomach (esophagus) to look for abnormal, enlarged veins (varices).
- Screen for polyps. People who have inherited syndromes that can cause polyps in the small intestine might occasionally undergo capsule endoscopy.
- Do follow-up testing after X-rays or other imaging tests. If the results of an imaging test are unclear or inconclusive, your doctor might recommend a capsule endoscopy to get more information.
How you prepare
Before for your capsule endoscopy, your doctor is likely to ask that you take steps to prepare yourself. Be sure to follow your doctor’s instructions in preparing for your capsule endoscopy. Failure to follow the directions may mean that your capsule endoscopy has to be rescheduled.
During the procedure
Once the recorder is connected and ready, you swallow the camera capsule with water. A slippery coating makes it easier to swallow. Once you swallow it, you shouldn’t be able to feel it.
You’ll then go about your day. You can drive, and you might be able to go to work, depending on your job. Your doctor will discuss restrictions — for example, avoiding strenuous activity, such as running and jumping — with you.
After the procedure
Wait two hours after you swallow the capsule to resume drinking clear liquids. After four hours, you can have a light lunch or a snack unless your doctor tells you otherwise.
The capsule endoscopy procedure is complete after eight hours or when you see the camera capsule in the toilet after a bowel movement, whichever comes first. Remove the patches and the recorder from your body, pack them in a bag and follow your doctor’s instructions for returning the equipment. You can flush the camera capsule down the toilet.
Once the procedure is finished, your body might expel the camera capsule within hours or after several days. Each person’s digestive system is different. If you don’t see the capsule in the toilet within two weeks, contact your doctor. Your doctor might order an X-ray to see if the capsule is still in your body.