Jay W. Marks, MD, is a board-certified internist and gastroenterologist. He graduated from Yale University School of Medicine and trained in internal medicine and gastroenterology at UCLA/Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
Dr. Lee was born in Shanghai, China, and received his college and medical training in the United States. He is fluent in English and three Chinese dialects. He graduated with chemistry departmental honors from Harvey Mudd College. He was appointed president of AOA society at UCLA School of Medicine. He underwent internal medicine residency and gastroenterology fellowship training at Cedars Sinai Medical Center.
While the capsule provides the best means of viewing the inside of the
small intestine, there are many inherent limitations and problems with its use,
the most important of which is thatthe capsuledoes not allow for therapy. Other problems
include:
Abnormalities in some areas of the intestine are missed because of rapid
transit of the capsule and blurred, uninterpretable photographs.
At times, transit is so slow that the capsule examines only part of the
small intestine before the battery fails.
If abnormalities are discovered that require surgical resection or
further investigation, it may be difficult to determine where in the small
intestine the abnormality is and thereby help direct therapy.
If there are narrow areas due to scarring (strictures) or tumors in the
small intestine, the capsule can get stuck in the narrow area and cause an
obstruction of the intestine that requires surgical removal of the capsule.
(For this reason, in patients who are suspected of having a stricture, a
self-dissolving, dummy capsule is swallowed first. If the dummy capsule
sticks, it can be seen on an x-ray of the abdomen and the location of the
stricture determined. Because it dissolves with time, however, the
obstruction will resolve without surgery, and the real capsule will not be
swallowed.)
Finally, reviewing the tens of thousands of photographs is very time
consuming for the conscientious physician.
What type of diseases can be diagnosed with capsule endoscopy?
Capsule endoscopy continues to improve technically. It has revolutionized
diagnosis by providing a sensitive (able to identify subtle abnormalities) and
simple (non-invasive) means of examining the inside of the small intestine. Some
common examples of small intestine diseases diagnosed by capsule endoscopy
include:
Angiodysplasias (collections of small blood vessels located just beneath
the inner intestinal lining that can bleed intermittently and cause anemia)
Abdominal pain is pain in the belly and can be acute or chronic. Causes include inflammation, distention of an organ, and loss of the blood supply to an organ. Abdominal pain can reflect a major problem with one of the organs in the abdomen such as the appendix, gallbladder, large and small intestine, pancreas, liver, colon, duodenum, and spleen.
Crohn's disease is a chronic inflammatory disease,
primarily involving the small and large intestine, but which can
affect other parts of the digestive system as well. Abdominal pain, diarrhea, vomiting, fever, and weight loss are
common symptoms.
Anemia is the condition of having less than the normal number of red blood cells or less than the normal quantity of hemoglobin in the blood. The oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood is, therefore, decreased.
Non-Hodgkin's lymphoma is cancer of the lymphatic system, a vital part of the body's immune system. Symptoms include swollen lymph nodes, fever, night sweats, coughing, weakness, chest pain, unexplained weight loss, and abdominal pain. Treatment depends on which type of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma you have, the stage of the cancer, your age, how fast the cancer is growing, and whether you have other health problems.
Dyspepsia (indigestion) is a functional disease in which the gastrointestinal organs, primarily the stomach and first part of the small intestine, function abnormally. It is a chronic disease in which the symptoms fluctuate infrequency and intensity. Symptoms of dyspepsia include upper abdominal pain, belching, nausea, vomiting, abdominal bloating, early satiety, and abdominal distention (swelling). These symptoms are most often provoked by eating.
Cancer is a disease caused by an abnormal growth of cells, also called malignancy. It is a group of 100 different diseases, and is not contagious. Cancer can be treated through chemotherapy, a treatment of drugs that destroy cancer cells.
Digestion RSS
Healthy Living Tips
This site complies with the