Ingestion of capsule allows visual of digestive system

HC MARBELLA: The endoscopic capsule technique allows the study of areas of the small intestine

‘THE endoscopic capsule is a diagnostic technique which allows us to see parts of the digestive system via a small device, which the patient swallows as if it were a pill. It is able to take detailed photos in the search for suspicious lesions’, explains Dr. José Miguel Rosales, the Digestive System specialist at the HC Marbella International Hospital, as he describes the advantage of this procedure in comparison with traditional endoscopies.

Even though the endoscopic capsule cannot be used for therapeutic purposes, which a conventional endoscopy can, ‘it makes it possible to study areas of the small intestine which are normally difficult to access’, says the doctor. For example,’in patients with certain chronic illnesses who suffer bleeding, we can use this device to see whether there are lesions in the small intestine which show the presence of malformations which bleed easily’, he continues.

In fact, ‘this small capsule can be swallowed without difficulty and it consists of a transparent section on one side with the LED transmitters, which give the light’, explains Dr. Rosales. It also has a lens and a CMOS sensor that takes the pictures of the intestine with an angle of vision of 160º, taking two images per second.

The images are transmitted via radiofrequency thanks to the technology of the capsule and a belt with a small recorder which is worn by the patient. Once the test is over, this recorder is connected to a computer with special software which downloads it so the Digestive System specialist can see the images.

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