Camera pill helps hospital detect disease

THS

Summerville, SC –Summerville Medical Center is now providing PillCam® capsule endoscopy, an innovative, non-invasive procedure, to diagnose and treat patients with gastrointestinal disorders of the small intestine such as Crohn’s disease, celiac disease, gastrointestinal bleeding, inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), small bowel tumors and NSAID-related injuries; and disorders of the esophagus including esophageal varices, gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) and Barrett’s esophagus.
PillCam SB and PillCam ESO video capsules contain miniature cameras that enable physicians to visualize the small intestine and esophagus, respectively.
This non-invasive diagnostic procedure has become an alternative to traditional endoscopy, the most common procedure used to examine the small bowel and esophagus.
Over 650,000 people around the world are benefiting from the capsule endoscopy procedure.
“Capsule endoscopy has allowed our physicians to more accurately detect and diagnose small bowel and esophageal disorders in our patients,” said Betty Hobeika, operating room director for Summerville Medical Center.
“We are pleased that we can now offer a painless, patient-friendly diagnostic alternative to traditional endoscopy for patients experiencing persistent gastrointestinal symptoms.”  ?During the PillCam SB procedure the patient swallows the capsule which passes through the digestive tract transmitting more than 50,000 images to a data recording device attached to a belt worn by the patient for an eight-hour period. The small bowel images are then downloaded to a Given® Workstation where a physician reviews the images and makes a diagnosis.
PillCam SB received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance in 2001.
During the PillCam ESO procedure the patient ingests the capsule while lying flat on his or her right side.
After swallowing the capsule, the patient drinks a sip of water every 30 seconds over a seven-minute ingestion period. During this 30 minute procedure PillCam ESO transmits about 2,600 color images (14 images per second) to a data recording device attached to a belt worn around the patient’s waist.
The images are then downloaded to a Given Workstation for physician review and diagnosis.  PillCam ESO received FDA clearance in 2004.
Approximately 70 million Americans currently suffer from gastrointestinal disorders.
Inflammatory bowel disease impacts as many as one million individuals, with Crohn’s disease affecting 500,000 Americans.
More then 19 million people suffer from GERD which over time can lead to Barrett’s esophagus and ultimately to esophageal cancer, the fastest growing cancer in the U.S.
However, many of these conditions go undiagnosed, or are treated by trial and error due to the limited diagnostic options available for this region of the body.
Summerville Medical Center is a 94-bed, acute care hospital located in the Oakbrook section of Summerville between Ladson and Trolley Roads and is part of Trident Health System - an HCA hospital system comprised of three acute care hospitals – Trident Medical Center, Summerville Medical Center and Colleton Medical Center – as well as Moncks Corner Medical Center and diagnostic centers throughout Berkeley, Charleston, Colleton and Dorchester counties.