Capsule Endoscopy

Capsule endoscopy is a procedure that uses a tiny wireless camera to take pictures of your digestive tract. A capsule endoscopy camera sits inside a vitamin-size capsule 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.

Capsule Endoscopy helps doctors see inside your small intestine — an area that isn’t easily reached with more-traditional endoscopy procedures. 

Your doctor might recommend a capsule endoscopy procedure to:

• Find the cause of gastrointestinal bleeding
• Diagnose inflammatory bowel diseases, such as Crohn’s disease
• Diagnose cancer
• Diagnose celiac disease
• Screen for polyps
• Do follow-up testing after X-rays or other imaging tests. If results of an imaging test are unclear or inconclusive, your doctor might recommend a capsule endoscopy to get more information.