Capsule colonoscopy: PillCam Colon.

Abstract

(1) The PillCam Colon capsule is an ingestible miniature camera that captures images of the colon's inner lining. (2) There is limited evidence on the use of this technology in imaging the colon. Two small, methodologically flawed pilot studies found that for patients with positive findings (i.e., abnormalities detected), the rates of detection with the PillCam Colon capsule were similar to those obtained with conventional colonoscopy. (3) No serious adverse events were reported in the pilot studies, although some patients had delayed excretion of the capsule. (4) A challenge for clinicians using this technology will be the time required to read the large quantity of video images produced. Further enhancements to the software system used to view the images may address this issue.