Thursday, November 26, 2020

Looking inside the horse’s gut

 A wireless endoscopy capsule can be used to inspect the inside of the horse’s gastro-intestinal tract.

The “ALICAM system” capsule is 11mm in diameter and 33mm long. It contains 4 micro-cameras, mounted at 90° to provide a 360°panoramic view. The cameras are activated by movement  (this helps prolong the battery life and so increase the length of the digestive tract that can be imaged.) When activated, the cameras record images at the rate of 20 /second and store them on the capsule’s internal memory chip.

Images are only available for inspection once the capsule has passed through the digestive tract and has been retrieved from the manure (using radiography).

Researchers at the University of Calgary have been studying the technique.

Five adult horses with no signs or history of gastro-intestinal disease were included in the study. The researchers assessed different protocols for preparing the horses and found that the one giving most useful images was to starve the horse for 24 hours before introducing the capsule.


Satisfactory
images were obtained of the pylorus, major duodenal papilla, individual villi, and ileocecal junction. Visualization of large intestinal mucosa was poor.

Among the abnormalities identified on the images were mucosal erosion, ulceration and haemorrhage, areas of thickened mucosa, and evidence of parasitism.

On average, it took 6.5 days from introduction for the capsule to be retrieved in the manure.

The researchers conclude: “this novel endoscopic capsule appears safe, practical, and non-invasive in horses; however, variability in capsule excretion time must be taken into account for clinical application.”


For more details, see:

A wireless endoscopy capsule suitable for imaging of the equine stomach and small intestine

Mei Steinmann, Rebecca J. Bezugley, Stephanie L. Bond, Jill S. Pomrantz, and Renaud Léguillette

J Vet Intern Med. (2020) 34(4): 1622–1630.

doi: 10.1111/jvim.15825

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