Gastrointestinal Transit Measurement System

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Gastrointestinal motility disorders are a significant health problem accounting for millions of physician visits each year. In many patients, measurement of gastrointestinal transit can provide important diagnostic information. However, current transit measurement techniques involve radiation and cannot make the long-duration, highly-detailed recordings needed to fully evaluate patients. The goal of this project is development of a new technique for measurement of gastrointestinal transit in patients with motility disorders. The technique captures the fine details of gastrointestinal transit, does not involve radiation, and is capable of making recordings for extended periods while patients undergo their daily routines. In Phase I of this project, a prototype of the Gastrointestinal Transit Measurement System (GTMS) was constructed and successfully tested in the laboratory. In Phase II, the system will be enhanced to support operation on fully ambulatory subjects and evaluated using volunteer subjects with normal gastrointestinal function.