Studies: PillCam SB Allows Earlier Diagnosis, Treatment of GI Diseases

LONDON—Given Imaging Ltd. announced that three new studies demonstrate that PillCam® SB endoscopy has a clear impact on how physicians manage GI patients, including those patients suspected of having Crohn's disease. The studies were presented at the Gastro 2009 conference, Nov. 21-25.

A 950-patient, single-center study (P2106) analyzing the largest series of capsule endoscopy cases from the United Kingdom examined capsule endoscopy's diagnostic yield and impact on patient management. Results of the study showed that using PillCam SB changed how physicians treated 27 percent of all patients and 79 percent of patients who were subsequently diagnosed with Crohn's disease.

A poster presentation concluded that physicians can diagnose and classify Crohn's disease earlier by using PillCam SB. The study also found that based upon capsule endoscopy findings, physicians changed their therapeutic strategy for 22 percent of their patients.

Finally, data from a poster showed that by using PillCam SB, physicians at community hospitals were able to definitively determine the source of GI bleeding in 58 percent of patients who presented with obscure gastrointestinal bleeding (OGIB) and subsequently treated more than one-third of those examined. These results mirror results seen in large, tertiary referral centers. Researchers concluded that a normal capsule endoscopy indicates a good prognostic course.