Advantage of Capsule Endoscope

The practice of conventional endoscopy requires expanding the gastric walls to view the affected area. In order to do so, the gastrointestinal tract must be either directly pressurized by air, or use the endoscope mounted "balloon method". These methods can be an uncomfortable experience for patients despite being performed with anesthesia. Without preforming this procedure, doctors are unable to properly diagnose conditions of the gastrointestinal tract. Due to the procedures required for conventional endoscopy, capsule endoscopy is rapidly becoming the viable solution for both doctors and patients. Capsule endoscopes greatly contribute to the diagnosis of the gastrointestinal tract. With both wireless capabilities and superior picture quality, capsule endoscopy gives doctors much more freedom then ever before. The wider use of a capsule endoscope, not only can make a patients' visit much more comfortable, but also lowers examination costs and offers patients emphasis for proper treatment. Finally, capsule endoscopes are designed to be disposable after the use, which eliminates any possibility of in-hospital infection that can be assosciated with conventional endoscopy.

Problems of Current Capsule Endoscope

An endoscopic capsule is equipped with a lens and image sensor in a moving direction. The lens should be a wide-angle type to capture as much of the gastrointestinal tract as it can. However a wide-angle lens has an inherent fault; not capturing a full clear image because of the distinct characterics of distorting peripheral vision. We would be not able to achieve the fulfilled requirements of capsule endoscopy without overcoming this big problem.
Our goal was: “To capture the whole gastrointestinal tract completely and provide both a clear and high-quality resolution image for practical diagnosis”
It would be against our corporate ethics to continue capsule endoscopy with the knowledge of the exsisting fault of current capsule endoscopes. This merely imposes unnecessary burden to both doctors and patients.

What is “Sayaka”, the next generation capsule endoscope?

Sayaka is a new-type capsule endoscope simply designed for the purpose of capturing images of whole inner surface of the long digestive tract.

1. Image Capturing Mechanism

Sayaka is a new-type capsule endoscope simply designed for the purpose of capturing images of whole inner surface of the long digestive tract.

2. Image Processing System

The captured images are transmitted to the receiver and then processed into an extensive series of overlapped "mosaicing" images. These "mosaic" images are created to replicate a 6 to 8 meter long digestive canal. The result is a pipe shaped tract that can be "dissected" to veiw in long form. The developed tract then can be stored in a long and continuous form. Any spot of the canal can also be magnified up to 75 times on the screen.

3. Sayaka Technology

Moving video pictures can be replayed just as they were recorded, thus enabling doctors to recognize the subtle motion of peptic cells and make a diagnosis regarding those cells. It is now possible to measure field size and area of afflicted sections by overlaying the "grid software" with precision within 0.1mm.

4. Possible Recommended Application

This new technology may work to benefit other existing clinical applications. For example, Sayaka has the ability to assist doctors in locating and monitoring secular distortion. The afflicted section can then be compared or superimposed by using biennially prerecorded images.

Presently the observation of obtained images is considered as a time-consuming task from the doctor's point of view when using a conventional capsule endoscope. The next generation capsule endoscope, however, provides new methods for examination of the digestive tract by showing the inside of the whole tubular organ in a continuous plain view. Sayaka has the potential to fulfill a significant roll with medical examinations in the future.