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Man Reports PillCam Stuck In His Gut For Over 12 Weeks
A Portland man appears to have a pill-sized camera stuck in his gut. That man is me... Let me explain.
For the average Joe, the following statement might sound a bit peculiar: I have swallowed a pill-sized camera a number of times. You see, I have Crohn's Disease (CD) in the small intestine -- a 20 foot-long portion of the gastrointestinal tract that runs between the stomach and the large intestine (colon). A "PillCam" is the most non-invasive, detailed method to survey this area as it doesn't require a scope up the rectum or down the esophagus, nor does it require any tissue slicing. It's also one of the safest procedures available -- the retention rate is as low as 1%. Unfortunately, this most recent capsule endoscopy resulted in my admission to the 1% club.
On March 27th, 2018, I swallowed the PillCam that is currently lodged in my small intestine. If you do the math, that's more than 82 days ago (over 12 weeks). After hiking Smith Rock and summiting Black Butte a couple weeks later, I thought for sure the pill would have exited. It didn't, as evident by the follow-up X-ray. It can be difficult to find research on such a what-if scenario that happens to so few, but I did manage to find a Motherboard article telling the story of Scott Willis, a CD patient that had a PillCam lodged in his gut for eight weeks. One of the key differences between him and me is that he had a partial block and endured more symptoms, prompting him to schedule a procedure to get it out quicker. I'm relatively symptom free.
We have tried upping the dose of corticosteroids to reduce inflammation and help the pill pass through the strictured areas, but that didn't seem to work. Most recently, I had two double-balloon enteroscopy procedures done within a week apart. They were able to locate the PillCam during the second procedure, but weren't able to retrieve it without risking the scope itself becoming stuck. The next step is to try again via the esophagus. The potential issue/complication here is the location. As my doctors warned, the PillCam is stuck 15 feet down and the scope is only 20 feet in length. There's little wiggle room if the pill is slightly further down the GI tract than estimated.
I am sharing this story with the Slashdot community for two reasons. First, those entrenched in the world of cyborgs and/or modern-day medical procedures may find this experience particularly interesting. Second, the more people who know about the procedures and complications of Crohn's Disease the better. For those interested, I'll update this post after the next procedure. Have you or someone you know experienced a capsule endoscopy? Please share what you feel comfortable with.
UPDATE 7/11/18: Yesterday, I had the procedure to remove the PillCam via the esophagus and it wasn't successful. The doctor said he tried everything he could to retrieve it but the scope wasn't quite long enough to reach the pill. I'll be talking with a surgeon next week and will update this post when a surgery date is confirmed.
For the average Joe, the following statement might sound a bit peculiar: I have swallowed a pill-sized camera a number of times. You see, I have Crohn's Disease (CD) in the small intestine -- a 20 foot-long portion of the gastrointestinal tract that runs between the stomach and the large intestine (colon). A "PillCam" is the most non-invasive, detailed method to survey this area as it doesn't require a scope up the rectum or down the esophagus, nor does it require any tissue slicing. It's also one of the safest procedures available -- the retention rate is as low as 1%. Unfortunately, this most recent capsule endoscopy resulted in my admission to the 1% club.
On March 27th, 2018, I swallowed the PillCam that is currently lodged in my small intestine. If you do the math, that's more than 82 days ago (over 12 weeks). After hiking Smith Rock and summiting Black Butte a couple weeks later, I thought for sure the pill would have exited. It didn't, as evident by the follow-up X-ray. It can be difficult to find research on such a what-if scenario that happens to so few, but I did manage to find a Motherboard article telling the story of Scott Willis, a CD patient that had a PillCam lodged in his gut for eight weeks. One of the key differences between him and me is that he had a partial block and endured more symptoms, prompting him to schedule a procedure to get it out quicker. I'm relatively symptom free.
We have tried upping the dose of corticosteroids to reduce inflammation and help the pill pass through the strictured areas, but that didn't seem to work. Most recently, I had two double-balloon enteroscopy procedures done within a week apart. They were able to locate the PillCam during the second procedure, but weren't able to retrieve it without risking the scope itself becoming stuck. The next step is to try again via the esophagus. The potential issue/complication here is the location. As my doctors warned, the PillCam is stuck 15 feet down and the scope is only 20 feet in length. There's little wiggle room if the pill is slightly further down the GI tract than estimated.
I am sharing this story with the Slashdot community for two reasons. First, those entrenched in the world of cyborgs and/or modern-day medical procedures may find this experience particularly interesting. Second, the more people who know about the procedures and complications of Crohn's Disease the better. For those interested, I'll update this post after the next procedure. Have you or someone you know experienced a capsule endoscopy? Please share what you feel comfortable with.
UPDATE 7/11/18: Yesterday, I had the procedure to remove the PillCam via the esophagus and it wasn't successful. The doctor said he tried everything he could to retrieve it but the scope wasn't quite long enough to reach the pill. I'll be talking with a surgeon next week and will update this post when a surgery date is confirmed.
Maybe you can use some strong rare-earth magnets to help it along?
Have you tried eating only meat? http://meatheals.com/category/... Other, lower tech approaches: The Core Strategy | Crohn's Dad http://bit.ly/15S3dWL
"Tempers are wearing thin. Let's just hope some robot doesn't kill everybody." --Bender
It sounds really shitty.
That's an interesting idea. I know that even small, cheap rare earth magnets from the dollar store can move things a couple inches away. YouTube videos of the Magnepull show the technique used to move wires through walls with a magnet, including walls stuffed with insulation. Of course, it could also be dangerous, but it might be worth talking to the doctor about. Maybe show the doctor the Magnepull video.
Rare earth magnets that are SWALLOWED can do damage, but of course that's not what's being discussed here.
For the double-balloon procedure, which end did they enter? If via the colon, I'll have to reference this in the future when BeuHD makes very silly posts a about solar-electric and such.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
Slashdot, fix the reply notifications... You won't get away with it...
When I saw the title of the post I knew this would be about someone with Crohn's. I have it too, and my doctor wanted to do a PillCam, but luckily he decided to do an abdominal MRI first to make sure there weren't any strictures narrow enough to prevent the pill from passing through. After the MRI the doc decided it was too risky, and went for a traditional colonoscopy instead.
I hope they find a way to get yours out without resorting to major surgery. :)
Good luck! Crohn's sucks enough without problems like this to deal with.
Hopefully the Crohn's MAP vaccine will be approved soon and we can all put this behind us.
just wait for the bill medical procedures only place when when they F* up you are stuck with an bill to fix it.
He's just retaining his own data because he didn't sign the PooLA agreement. If he had known the latin word "Camera" origin he might have expected what happens you put something private, where the sun don't shine. But he should have known that face book never lets you excrete your data.
Some drink at the fountain of knowledge. Others just gargle.
Prune Juice
and plenty of it.
Plain and simple: thanks for taking about this, both for the interest and the education.
I'm typically jokey here, but really: thanks, and good luck losing that thing.
And best wishes for a speedy recovery (or at least as speedy as it can be at this point.)
You should hear about my kidney stones. But that was nothing compared the migraines. Severe pain, the doctor recommended castration to relieve them. Of course I didn't want to comply but the pain was so bad finally I agreed. After the surgery, I didn't have headaches but for obvious reasons I was feeling down. To cheer me up I went to get a nice, custom tailored, French suit. The tailor measured me, and said, "you wear size 35 pants." I said, "No, I do and always have worn size 32. Don't tell me what I know." The tailor said, "No Monsieur, I am sorry, but for a man like you, wearing size 32 will be too tight and give you severe migraines. I'm surprised you haven't had them already."
Anyway I hope your camera pill passes better than my kidney stones.
"First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
I have Crohns and had five Colonoscopies over the years, just to keep an eye on things. I asked my doctor if we should try pill cam, as we got them here now. He answered that they preferred only to use them if there was a very good reason to, not for routine spelunking. Reason was that a guy had gotten it stuck and needed surgery for removal.
Try Apple cider Vinegar , with your next attack. It works within a minute takes the pain away. Works perfect for me. (a couple shot glasses full mixed with a little water).
[($)]
Ive got EOE as well as a ton of food allergies that sorta came out of nowhere. Kinda guessing maybe lupus. The doctors are clueless and dont really care beyond treating symptoms. Anyhow, I've never understood wanting to educate others about what I have. I have it, they don't. Its not relevant to them. They're not likely to be affected in their life by it. Its just my problem, not societies. Nothing against the author. Just thinking out loud and wondering about the thought processes of others.
I know little of CD, but I recall a girl with an extreme case, wanting to have a euthanasia option here in Australia available to her, her death details were quite gruesome. I hope it goes ok for you.
This is not a joke. Try smoking (or vaping, or eating) some marijuana. It tends to relax internal muscles and may help you pass it. At worst, it's a cheap, harmless, fun thing to try before going in for a more complicated, potentially needless procedure.
It sounds as though despite active disease, stricture, and these technical headaches, that you are active (hiking tall rocks) and thus not acutely complicated by your palsied pill. If you are not sick, then no urgent risk. The big concern of course is that the thing will lodge in the stricture and you will get acutely obstructed.
I assume that your doctors have already tried various things, but on hearing the story anew, several things come to mind. They might have all been done already, but it doesn't hurt to get fresh ideas:
- Steroid boost. I see that that has been tried, but all too often when I hear that steroids were raised, it is often just trivial amounts. If reduction of inflammation and edema will loosen the stricture and de-narrow the lumen, one to two weeks of sizeable doses might be needed, e.g. the kinds of doses used for severe life threatening flares of autoimmune disorders such as lupus or pemphigus.
- Lubrication. Mineral oil is a classic stool softener and lubricant. It is less in favor today because (1) concerns about hydrocarbon aspiration and pneumonitis if you are obstructed and vomiting, and (2) high priced pharmaceutical pills are more in the minds of most physicians these days. If you are not obstructed (sounds like you are not), then a good swig or two of the stuff might help.
- Bulk flow. The concentrated osmotic agents that are used for bowel preps might create a wave of peristalsis and flow that might carry the flotsam forward. This could be a concern if you are obstructed, but evidently you are not. But if you were . . .
- Gastrograffin swallow. This is intestinal x-ray dye. It is very hygroscopic and can induce bulk fluid flows as well as dehydrating the mucosa (lining tissue) of the bowel surface. It is often used as a first line intervention to alleviate an early bowel obstruction before resorting to surgery. A gastrograffin swallow would partly combine the effects of steroids and osmotic agents, which if primed with mineral oil might get the thing to sneak by.
- Technical. If they could see it with the 2-balloon enteroscope, then they might have snagged it except that they either could not reach it or else not grab it with a biopsy forceps. Instead, they could use a stone basket. If the stone baskets are on too short a wire, then weld-solder-splice an extension. Big companies such as Olympus that make the equipment will often make custom modified hardware for special circumstances, and making a 20 or 25 foot long stone basket might be easy if you ask your local rep for help.
None of these are guaranteed to work, but they have a fair chance of doing so, and they are safe. Perhaps one or some of these have not been tried yet, in which case it is worth discussing them with your doctors.
Good luck.
I hope you continue to stay mostly symptom free until the thing passes.
#DeleteChrome
I’m sure there’s someone that’s willing to pay to watch that livestream. Or maybe just livestream it with sponsorship from laxative companies.
This, too, shall pass.
I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
! YOU SHALL NOT PASS
I had normal (but very painful) constriction in my gut caused by binge eating too much fibre.
Was on the verge of going to the doc but it was the middle of the night so I made a cocktail of 4 parts pineapple juice to 1 part olive oil. About three tall glasses of those shifted it. Shake it well and drink before it separates.
You can add an olfactory marker to see (or rather smell) if it's passing round the obstruction. Garlic works.
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
If you believe that 1-3% approximation, then I've got a fine set of encyclopedias that are going to find a new owner. Do you take pharmaceutical enterprises any more at their word than deceitful software shops?
Swallow a little battle-bot
Table-ized A.I.
Sorry, I did the math.. 82 84 = 7 Ã-- 12 So maybe "almost 12 weeks" would've worked better here.
Sorry, I did the math.. 82 is less than 84, which equals 7 times 12, that is, the number of days in 12 weeks. So maybe "almost 12 weeks" would've worked better here.
Roller coasters and kidney stones.
One of my close relatives has crohn's and a blockage would be painful dangerous and expensive. I assume a laxative won't work as this is the small intestine but are you drinking a lot of fluids or trying castor oil in case that may help lubricate the stuck pillcam ?
Linkedin http://in.linkedin.com/in/robinsaikatchatterjee
There is a researcher, "Cicero Galli Coimbra" in Brazil that for more 20 years is stopping the progression of autoimmune sickness using high dosages of "D vitamin". He developed a protocol with the correct dosages for a lot of sickness and I think yours. Please research his name and try to find more about his research work in this area. If you have interest and difficulty to find him, please contact me that I can send to you his phone number and address. In youtube you will find a lot of videos avout him, but the majority of them is in portuguese language.
I've probably got a benign from of Crohn, and have always refused any invasive measure or method of diagnostic, exactly in order to avoid risking what unfortunately happened to the author of TFA. I'm keeping it in check, more or less, with anti-inflammants and some care in my diet. Not ideal, and I know it may be progressing, but then again.. I'm 51. I'll sit out the ride until I die.
For the rest, I'd not be too anxious about the thing. If your gut doesn't protest, you may possibly be best off by leaving it where it is. In any case: all the best !
Religous speak to God. Insane are spoken to by God. When all shut up, one can finally hear Shostakovich in peace
I thought for sure the pill would have exited.
Is that what the kids are calling it these days? I'm not judging.
Have you tried an osmotic laxative consumed (entire thing) over the course of 3 hours along with a couple gallons of power aid or similar? I also have Chron's Disease and I had to take this last time I had an (emergency) colonoscopy. Something like this:
https://www.amazon.com/Basic-C...
Be warned, it will shuttle every last bit of fluid you consume with it directly into your colon.
Brought to you by Carl's Junior.
I am sorry you have this problem.
I am a Trauma, General surgeon.
This is what I would do:
1) removing the pill does not fix the stricture problem. It simply kicks the proverbial can down the road. The next time something gets stuck there, (and there will be a next time) it will be possibly worse. It may lead to a perforation and an emergency surgery with possible ostomy (stool bag) as the outcome.
2) I would do laparoscopy using three 5mm ports. Identify the stricture, and do the correct surgery which is a stricturaplasty And removal of the Pill Cam. If stricturoplasty is inadequate then you may need a resection.
Thatâ(TM)s it.
The real problem is that you can not avoid the inevitable which is you have a relatively asymptotic stricture which is symptomatic by virtue of the Pill Cam not passing through. Consider it a warning and deal with it in semi-elective manner. Better now then as an emergency which given enough time it will become.
This smacks of editorial over reach, and I don't like it.
If Slashdot is going to start deleting comments, they're removing one of the last reasons to stay here.
Of course, it could also be dangerous, but it might be worth talking to the doctor about. {...} Rare earth magnets that are SWALLOWED can do damage,
The danger of swallowing rare earth magnets comes from the plural -s at the end of the word.
If you swallow just one, nothing of significance happens, you'll eventually just shit it out.
The risks rise dramatically if there's more than one magnet, specially if swallowed on separate instance (not stuck together as 1 block, but separately).
They'll travel with a distance apart from each other along the 20feet of gut tract.
If they come (from the outside perspective) close to each other, while they are in 2 distinct part of the gut (from the perspective of the length of the gut).
(Say, each magnet is in a turn, and both turn happens to be close to each other. Basically think a long labyrinth and the magnets only having a couple of walls inbetween), then there's a high risk that the magnets will attract each other and get stuck.
They'll be stick magnetically to each other, which might prevent from moving further along the gut.
They'll also be very strongly pinching whatever (mostly gut wall of the different loops) is in between them, which could damage the tissue, and/or block the blood flow due to the pinching.
These can lead to the the gut wall dying.
Regarding the camera, as you say it might be an idea worth talking but could be dangerous.
The poor guy isn't healthy, he has a gut disease (chronic inflammation).
His gut doesn't behave like a simple 20feet long hose. But instead due to the inflammation, the gut's wall is partly damaged, and in some points is stuck together (that's the "strictures" he's talking about). The hypothesis is that the pill is stuck in one such stricture.
Pulling it with magnets could potential help it go further along the gut.
But pulling it with magnets could also pull the pill against damaged wall, burrowing it further into the walls, or risking to rupture a peculiarly damaged wall.
For the double-balloon procedure, which end did they enter? If via the colon, I'll have to reference this in the future when BeuHD makes very silly posts a about solar-electric and such.
Given that he mentions that the eosophagus would be the next entry to try, I think we can guess that the colon was the entry used in the first 2 attempts.
"Sufficiently advanced satire is indistinguishable from reality." - [Tips: 1DrYakQDKCQ6y52z6QbnkxHXAocMZJE61o ]
I read here and there about parasite therapy for Crohn's for many years. I keep expecting to hear it is being used but for various reasons still in trials.
This posting is provided 'AS IS' without warranty of any kind, implied or otherwise.
Sorry, I did the math.. 82 84 = 7 Ãf-- 12 So maybe "almost 12 weeks" would've worked better here.
I think he's using metric weeks. ;)
The very last reason, you mean. I hear about things in other places first these days, even G+regularly beats /. To the punch
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
Curious, what are the problems posed by simply leaving it where it is? Is it too expensive to leave, does it leak bad chemicals, cause some kind of problem?
- First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then ???, then profit.
99% of the time, they get through all those bends without any help. I think the idea would just give it a little nudge to get it unstuck, perhaps by rotating it to be pointed the right way, then leave it alone and let it continue through normally. Guiding it through all the twists and turns would be extremely difficult, but probably not helpful.
I'm reminded of when a toy is thrown into a tree. It falls through all the branches and twigs, then gets stuck halfway down. So someone throws a tennis ball at it to get it unstuck and then it falls through the remaining part of the tree.
is strong, but seriously I hope you get this resolved.
alright, one joke. I was backpacking as a kid (BSA@Philmont) and the rangers told us not to wait too long between BMs (as rookie were inclined to do, given the lack of comfortable facilities along the trail), as it could result in a trip to the doctor to resolve the situation via a dire-sounding process called manual extraction. "Unless," the ranger said, "you are a mathematician."
I had to ask. I knew something awful was coming, but I asked.
"What happens if you are a mathematician?"
"Why," said the ranger nonchalantly, "you can just work it out with a pencil."
In Soviet Russia jokes are formulaic and decidedly non-humorous.
This is about a camera, right? I was very nervous about clicking that Instagram link.
How many people swallow pill cameras every year?
Have gnu, will travel.
... shitty pill cam.
*Tadum* *Crash* *Thud*
Thank you, thank you. I'm here all week. Tip your waitor and try the fish.
We suffer more in our imagination than in reality. - Seneca
Black Butte is a "butt" of a mountain, nothing but steep lava talus, if a hike that jarring cannot dislodge the Butt Plug then nothing can. perhaps your Crohn's Disease super-organism is retaining the camera for study.
Beautiful Black Butt -- https://upload.wikimedia.org/w...
I'm sorry to hear about your problem. I hope everything comes out okay in the end.
Slow down, cowboy! It has been 4 hours since you last posted. You must wait another few hours.
If this guy is anything like my wife (who has Crohns) he's hit the max out of pocket cost already... My wife's Entyvio infusion gets billed at 25k a pop (I think insurance "negotiates" that down to 8k or so) and she gets them every 8 weeks.
Makes it easy to estimate medical expenses for the year though. Just premiums plus max out of pocket. Well unless insurance decides to screw you by denying coverage on something that is necessary...
Yes it's an anecdote! Were you expecting original research in a Slashdot comment?
I take it you've never worked with a general contractor, IBM, or Oracle.
He's watching re-runs for a while . . .
"I believe in Karma. That means I can do bad things to people all day long and I assume they deserve it." : Dogbert
Let me preface by saying I am a Gastroenterologist; you obviously have discussed the options here, and it sounds like you've developed a fibrostenotic stricture. While retrieving the capsule may give you some peace of mind for a while, it will not address the underlying issue, namely the fibrosis that has developed in this segment of bowel. First, you need to be on biologic therapy, either an anti-TNF like remicade, humira or cimzia, or one of the newer drugs such as entyvio, or things will, eventually get worse. Assuming this is already the case, I would proceed with a small bowel resection, performed by an experienced colo-rectal surgeon, preferably one with extensive experience inflammatory bowel disease. If you have not had a recent MR enterography, they can run the small bowel during surgery to evaluate for any other likely strictured or heavily diseased areas. I would not be in favor of stricturoplasty as recommended above, as recurrence rate is higher with stricturoplasty.
Rare Earth magnets aren't dangerous to swallow unless you swallow more than one.
To follow up on your diet modification suggestion and also probiotics, see Dr. Joel Fuhrman's writing; example: https://www.drfuhrman.com/libr...
Another way to deal with biofilms in theory is with phages (viruses that attack bacteria):
"Dr. Tim Lu - Biofilms and Phage Therapy"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
Mentioned here: http://www.phagetherapycenter....
"This 11 minute film is excerpted from an interview with Dr. Tim Lu, who is an expert in characterizing & eliminating biofilms with phage therapy. He offers some insightful ways to describe complex biofilms and their connection to antibiotic resistance."
Makes me wonder if people might get more intestinal biofilms (and related allergies etc.) if they are not drinking dirty water with more phages?
In general: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
A 21st century issue: the irony of technologies of abundance in the hands of those still thinking in terms of scarcity.
Note that either the camera would be not be attracted to a magnet and this suggestion therefore pointless,
The pill cam has very likely ferro-magnetic parts and should be (slightly) attracted to magnets.
But..
or it would be attracted to a magnet and pose the similar sort of risk as having plural magnets and stick together through intestinal wall.
That was my opinion too, hence my comment :
But pulling it with magnets could also pull the pill against damaged wall, burrowing it further into the walls, or risking to rupture a peculiarly damaged wall.
Though as noted by other answers, the point here isn't to have 2 strong magnet with only a few milimeters of walls of gut loops in between (that is guaranteed to pinch and damage even healthy gut), but to have a not so strongly attracted pill cam pulled from a distance by magnet outside the abdominal cavity (might or might not pull to strongly on the inflamed gut walls, but certainly not pinch them)
"Sufficiently advanced satire is indistinguishable from reality." - [Tips: 1DrYakQDKCQ6y52z6QbnkxHXAocMZJE61o ]
Does Crohn's disease exist in the non-industrialized world? Is it a symptom somewhat similar to allergic reactions gone crazy?
It's recently been proven that food allergies go away with tiny dosages over time. Allergy doctors give you shots of whatever it is you are allergic to.
Is there any hope that people with Crohn's just need their immune system to start reacting with more of the natural world? Mosquito bites, dirt, cuts, scrapes? I remember reading on Slashdot or somewhere a while back one grad student purposely infected himself with some sort of "common to 3rd world" intestinal worm/parasite which helped his allergies. He got called out because he might introduce that parasite to the US or other places that don't normally have it.
Anyway, I'm sure it's not so simple, but if I had that disease I sure as hell would try anything.
I suggest that you do not mule any ballon-pkg'd dope over any border.
That is a long time to have dope stuck in your digestive track.
On the other hand, it'd be unlikely you'd get caught even if CBP wanted to await a few evacuations just to see...
Self-importance and self-indulgence is the root of ALL evil.
A wee bit of vinegar, dont try that for the pain... opioids mmmmm, or mechanical pills??? wtf
[($)]