Testing a pill-sized camera on a string for bowel imaging

Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital have developed a new imaging tool—a small capsule about the size of a vitamin pill, attached to a string—that can take pictures inside your lower bowel without requiring sedation. The capsule is gently inserted and moved upward in a slow spiral motion, sending real-time images to a computer screen. This pilot study will test whether this inexpensive tool works safely and effectively in both healthy people and those with conditions like Lynch Syndrome, Crohn's disease, or inflammatory bowel disease.

Current methods to look inside the lower bowel often require sedation and can be expensive or uncomfortable. Researchers want to see if this new device can provide a simpler, less invasive way to detect disease in the bowel.