Capsule Camera Pill Test Question

[MCPayne]

Hi everyone.

I don't really know what to call this, but my GI is thinking about doing a test where you swallow a pill with a camera. Has anyone had this procedure, and how does it go? They said that they would do it at the hospital / clinic where I see my GI doctor.

He actually wants to do a Small Bowel Series first, which I have had done in the past, just to make sure it's okay to do the capsule test, since there's the slight chance if everything isn't okay, the camera can get stuck.

I know I'd most likely have to take a day off of work for this. If anyone has had this test I'd appreciate any input that you have.

 

[mike316atl]

I just had this procedure last week. I had a colonoscpoy, endoscopy and the pill endoscopy. During the endoscopy they inserted the pill into my stomach. You wear a belt along with a receiver around your shoulder. The pill shows all the places that the other tests cant show.

My first colonoscopy showed inflammation and ulcers in the TI. This last one it was all gone.
But, the pill showed ulceration and erosion in another part of the ileum that is pretty rare (according to the doc).

If you take this test, it will show pretty much everything!

 

[Asrun_Dream]

You should definitely have the Small Bowel Series done first. I had a capsule endoscopy done a few months ago, and the results from it were inconclusive. Then 2 weeks later I had a CT Scan which showed that the capsule was stuck in my Jejunum. Luckily it was stuck high enough up that the Doctor was able to retrieve it with an edoscope, otherwise they would have had to remove it sugically.

As for the test itself, it's easy. You just swallow the pill and walk around with the reciever on belt all day, and you can't eat or drink anything until the test is done. But you definitely don't want to thake the chance of the pill getting stuck somewhere, so the Small Bowel Series is a good idea.

 

[allieinwonder]

I had this procedure done a few weeks ago. Its a pretty easy test! A Small Bowel series is a good idea, because it makes sure the camera won't get stuck. I had to do a full prep before mine, then I swallowed the pill and wore a belt for 8 hours. My pill ended up taking 55,000 pictures of my intestines! I'm still waiting on the results since my doctor has to go through all of those pictures.

The great thing about this test is that its best test to see through the entire small intestine, since there is a huge section that can't be seen with a scope! That's why I had mine done, because they think my crohns is located there. I have also seen a lot of people on here get diagnosed by pill cam because of this, so hopefully it will show exactly whats going on with you so they will be able to treat you properly!

 

[dannysmom]

My son had this twice ... and it seems that each place may do things a bit different. He did not have to do the full prep, just a fast after midnight. But in retrospect, I wish he did. There was one picture of what could be debris or a Crohn's lesion. (and there was a lot of debris on shots). He was also allowed to eat light food after a few hours. The first time he had it, the pill stayed in his stomach the entire 8 hours (which is very odd) so was basically a waste of time since the battery died before it entered the small intestine for pictures. The second time they placed it endoscopically.

Both times we were allowed to leave the hospital. If you just swallow the pill you will be out of there very quickly. Danny had a small black bag with a strap around his waste and shoulder. The first time we went home (an hour drive). But the equipment needed to be returned to the hospital either in the evening or by 7AM the next day .... so the second time we stayed in NYC and had a great time at Central Park.

I think the pill is really clever, however it does not take pictures of 100% of the small intestine surface. The pill's camera takes a picture in one direction and the pill can twist and flip around as it is moving. The pill cannot take biopsies so any microscopic problems will not be seen.

 

[allieinwonder]

Wow, it stayed in his stomach the entire 8 hours? That's crazy. My GI had me stay in his office for about 15 minutes, then they used a wireless receiver to see where the pill was to make sure it had moved on to the small intestine.

Its true, it seems like every place does this test differently. We were allowed to leave the hospital and come back at the end of the day to return the belt. We ended up shopping all day since our house was 3.5 hours away.

 

[Birdmom]

When you guys mention "small bowel series", what's that??? I had what they call a small bowel follow-thru - where I drank some of the wonderful barium and then they took an x-ray after 20 minutes, waited another 20minutes then did another x-ray...
????
Thankx

 

[dannysmom]

When you guys mention "small bowel series", what's that??? I had what they call a small bowel follow-thru - where I drank some of the wonderful barium and then they took an x-ray after 20 minutes, waited another 20minutes then did another x-ray...
????
Thankx

That's it.

 

[Sparkle2012]

My capsule is stuck. Has anyone tried anything to flush it out that works without doctor assistance? Just curious. I have SBFT upcoming to identify location and I guess they will decide the process for retrieving.