Pilot study trialling a new ambulatory method for the clinical assessment of regional gastrointestinal transit using multiple electromagnetic capsules

Background Gastrointestinal (GI) motor disorders often involve several regions of the GI tract. Therefore, easy and safe assessment of whole gut and regional motility is valuable for more precise diagnosis. 3D-Transit is a novel method for ambulatory evaluation of total and regional gastrointestinal transit times (GITT) based on the anatomical localization of ingestible electromagnetic capsules. The main purpose of this study was to test the performance of the 3D-Transit system. Methods Twenty healthy volunteers each ingested three electromagnetic capsules over a period of two consecutive days. Standard radio-opaque markers (ROM) were also ingested to assess the agreement between total GITT obtained with both methods. Key Results Investigations were well-tolerated and three capsules could be tracked simultaneously with minimal data loss (Capsule 1: median: 0.2% of time (range 0–25.3%). Region specific contraction patterns were identified and used for computation of total and regional GITT in all subjects. Inter-observer agreement was 100% for total GITT (median variation 0%) but less for regional GITT. Day-to-day and diurnal variations were significant for total and regional GITT. Total GITT assessed by 3D-Transit capsules were moderately well-correlated to those assessed with standard ROM (Spearman's rho = 0.7). Conclusions & Inferences 3D-transit is a well-tolerated and minimal invasive ambulatory method for assessment of GI motility. By providing both total and regional transit times, the 3D-Transit system holds great promise for future clinical studies of GI function in health and disease.