Mayo Clinic Finds Capsule Endoscopy Can Detect Intestinal Damage Caused by Celi...(atient's waist. Then the recording devic...),Health

This study, the first of its kind, used capsule endoscopy to view intestinal damage in 37 patients with untreated, biopsy-proven celiac disease. Ninety-two percent had visible damage detected by capsule endoscopy. Twenty-two patients had extensive damage in the duodenum (first portion of the small intestine) and patchy damage throughout the jejunum (the small intestine's middle portion). Twelve patients had damage limited to the duodenum, and one patient had only patchy damage throughout the jejunum. However, no association was shown between the extent of intestinal damage and the patients' symptoms. Six months after a gluten-free diet was implemented, capsule endoscopy showed improvement, or decreased intestinal damage, in most patients.

"This study confirmed our suspicions that the most extensive intestinal damage in celiac disease patients is primarily to the duodenum. However, we were surprised to discover no correlation between extent of intestine damage and patient symptoms," says Dr. Murray. "Capsule endoscopy will now be another tool to diagnose celiac disease and detect intestinal damage both prior to and following treatment."

Other members of the Mayo Clinic research team included Alberto Rubio Tapia, M.D., Carol Van Dyke, Deanna Brogan, Mary Knipschield, Brian Lahr, Ashwin Rumalla, Alan Zinsmeister, Ph.D., and Christopher Gostout, M.D.

Each year, physicians at Mayo Clinic's campuses in Arizona, Florida and Minnesota treat hundreds of patients who have celiac disease. For more information on celiac disease treatment at Mayo Clinic, visit http://www.mayoclinic.org/celiac-disease/.

To obtain the latest news releases from Mayo Clinic, go to http://www.mayoclinic.org/news. M
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