Pacific Specialist Healthcare (PSH) has launched a new pill camera for its patients. Parvish Kumar, the director and CEO of PSH, stated that the pill camera has been successfully introduced in recent weeks.
The capsule endoscopy system is a small ingestible capsule that enables doctors to visualize the small bowel, the section of the intestine that connects the stomach to the large intestine and plays a crucial role in digestion and metabolic processes. This method allows for the diagnosis and monitoring of various digestive tract conditions.
The procedure involves the patient swallowing a capsule roughly the size of a large vitamin. Kumar explained that “Capsule Endoscopy is a non-invasive method for our doctors to specifically visualize the small bowel, which is otherwise difficult to reach with other endoscopic techniques.”
The capsule is equipped with a tiny camera and a light source that captures images of the small intestine as it naturally moves through the digestive system. These images are sent to a recorder that the patient wears on a belt across their body, with a sensor belt facilitating the image transmission.
Pacific Specialist Healthcare is at the forefront of using the wireless recorder belt. Capsule endoscopy is primarily used to identify the cause of small bowel bleeding, diagnose inflammatory bowel diseases like Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis, and screen for potential polyps and tumors in the digestive tract.
Bowel cancer ranks as the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths, just after lung cancer in some regions.
In a Q&A section, patients can find important details about the procedure. For instance, the procedure generally takes about 30 minutes to initiate at Pacific Specialist Healthcare Hospital. After the sensor belt is attached, the recorder connected, and the capsule swallowed, patients can go about their normal activities for a few hours as the test takes place.
After returning the recorder and sensors, the images collected during the procedure are downloaded to a computer for review by doctors, who will then contact the patient with the results.
Regarding concerns about discomfort, patients can be assured that there should be no pain or discomfort felt while swallowing the capsule or as it traverses the gastrointestinal tract. The capsule is designed to be disposable and will exit the body naturally during bowel movements.