Irritable Bowel Syndrome Message Boards | Gut analysis with smart pill could be new key to IBS treatment

Gut analysis 'key to IBS treatment'

(UKPA) � 1 day ago

A new "smart pill" could offer hope to thousands of people with irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) by delivering accurate information about the gut.

The capsule is swallowed and travels through the system analysing details such as how quickly food moves along the colon, acidity, pressure and temperature.

This is relayed to a monitor worn on the patient's waist for several days as they go about their daily activities.

Experts hope the pill will lead to much more accurate treatment for people with IBS and other long-term unexplained but frequently painful digestive problems.

Doctors at the private Princess Grace Hospital in central London have become the first in Europe to use the SmartPill. While other swallowed devices can take images of a patient's gut, this is the first to assess information on how it is functioning.

Gastro-physiologist Dr Anthony Hobson said : "This is a real breakthrough and gives many people real hope of a better quality of life by obtaining a more definitive diagnosis. Camera-based pills are good for looking at things like inflammation or blockages but this pill tells us about the function of the gut. We are looking at how the gut works and empties, and for the first time we are able to look at the different components of the gut.

Elizabeth Lynch, from Bishop's Stortford in Hertfordshire, has suffered from bloating, pain and other problems for more than 10 years and is thought to be the first UK patient to try the pill.

The SmartPill was able to rule out a range of potential problems of gut transit and helped doctors identify that Ms Lynch was suffering from an allergy or food intolerance type of condition.

"What it showed was that my system was working within the normal range and that gave a clue about a new form of treatment which has helped me a great deal," she said. "I am now feeling a lot better and it meant I didn't have to undergo another unpleasant endoscopy investigation."

The SmartPill GI Monitoring System at the Princess Grace costs �1,750, including all consultation fees.

Copyright � 2011 The Press Association. All rights reserved.

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Heather is the Administrator of the IBS Message Boards. She is the author of Eating for IBS and The First Year: IBS, and the CEO of Heather's Tummy Care. Join her IBS Newsletter. Meet Heather on Facebook!

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