Free
E-newsletter
Subscribe to Housecall
Our weekly general interest
e-newsletter keeps you up to date
on a wide variety of health topics.
close window
Mayo Clinic Housecall
Stay up to date on the latest health information.
What you get
- Free weekly e-newsletter
- Mayo Clinic expertise
- Recipes, tools and other helpful information
- We do not share your e-mail address
Definition
By Mayo Clinic staff
Capsule endoscopy is a procedure that uses a tiny wireless camera to take pictures of your digestive tract. The camera sits inside a vitamin-sized capsule that you swallow. As the capsule travels through your digestive tract, the camera takes thousands of pictures that are transmitted to a recorder you wear on a belt around your waist or over your shoulder.
Capsule endoscopy helps doctors see inside your small intestine — an area that isn't easily reached with conventional endoscopy. Capsule endoscopy can be used by adults and by children who can swallow the capsule. The procedure is usually started in a doctor's office.
References
- Dye C, et al. Introduction to small bowel endoscopy methods. Techniques in Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. 2012;14:83.
- Understanding capsule endoscopy. American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. http://www.asge.org/PatientInfoIndex.aspx?id=390. Accessed July 2, 2012.
- Rolniak D, et al. Complications of small bowel endoscopy. Techniques in Gastrointestinal Endoscopy. 2012;14:117.
- de Ridder L, et al. Small bowel endoscopy in children. Best Practice & Research Clinical Gastroenterology. 2012;26:337.
- Eliakim R. Video capsule endoscopy of the small bowel. Current Opinion in Gastroenterology. 2010;26:129.
- AskMayoExpert. When is capsule endoscopy indicated in patients with gastrointestinal (GI) tract bleeding? Rochester, Minn.: Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research; 2012.
- Feldman M, et al. Sleisenger & Fordtran's Gastrointestinal and Liver Disease: Pathophysiology, Diagnosis, Management. 9th ed. Philadelphia, Pa.: Saunders Elsevier; 2010. http://www.mdconsult.com/books/about.do?eid=4-u1.0-B978-1-4160-6189-2..X0001-7--TOP&isbn=978-1-4160-6189-2&about=true&uniqId=229935664-2192. Accessed July 2, 2012.
- AskMayoExpert. What tests are needed to evaluate a patient with gastrointestinal (GI) tract bleeding in whom upper endoscopy and colonoscopy are normal? Rochester, Minn.: Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research; 2012.
- Preparing for capsule endoscopy. American Gastroenterological Association. http://www.gastro.org/patient-center/procedures/capsule-endoscopy. Accessed July 2, 2012.
Find Mayo Clinic on