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G10 - March 2006 - Balloon Enteroscopy
Intro: It's a common condition thousands of people face each year. Bleeding from somewhere in the digestive tract. If that bleeding happens in the small bowel, it can be difficult to diagnose and treat. But doctors at Mayo Clinic are using a new tool to locate and stop the bleeding in the small bowel without having to do surgery.
| Video | Audio |
| Total running time 1:30 | "DEUCES WILD." |
| TO ANTHONY DYREK, A GAME OF CARDS WITH HIS WIFE JEAN AND SON JIM MEANS AN AFTERNOON OF FUN. | |
| Anthony Dyrek | "I DON'T WIN ALL THE GAMES. HA." |
| BUT ANTHONY FELT LIKE HE WAS DEALT A BAD HAND WHEN DOCTORS TOLD HIM HE WAS BLEEDING FROM SOMEWHERE IN HIS DIGESTIVE TRACT. | |
| Anthony Dyrek | "AND THEY DID THE USUAL COLONOSCOPY ... " |
Standup |
TO LOOK FOR PROBLEMS IN HIS COLON. DOCTORS ALSO GAVE ANTHONY AN ENDOSCOPY TO EXAMINE HIS ESOPHAGUS AND STOMACH. BOTH TESTS WERE NEGATIVE. THAT MEANS THE BLEEDING COULD BE HAPPENING IN ANTHONY'S SMALL BOWEL - A 25-FOOT-LONG, TWISTY AND STRETCHY ORGAN THAT UNTIL RECENTLY WAS HARD TO REACH WITHOUT EXPLORATORY SURGERY. BUT INSTEAD OF AN OPERATION, ANTHONY SWALLOWED A CAPSULE WITH A CAMERA IN IT. THE CAPSULE IS EXTREMELY USEFUL FOR FINDING THE CAUSE OF BLEEDING IN MANY PATIENTS ... |
Jonathan Leighton, M.D. |
"BUT IT DOESN'T ALLOW YOU TO TREAT THE LESION." |
| TO SOLVE THAT PROBLEM, DR. JONATHAN LEIGHTON IS USING A NEW TECHNOLOGY THAT ALLOWS HIM TO SEE THE BLEEDING AND STOP IT WITHOUT SURGERY. | |
Jonathan Leighton, M.D. |
"THIS NEW TOOL IS CALLED THE DOUBLE BALLOON ENTEROSCOPE." |
| WITH THE PATIENT SEDATED, DR. LEIGHTON LOWERS A SCOPE EQUIPPED WITH TWO BALLOONS THROUGH THE UPPER DIGESTIVE TRACT TO THE SMALL BOWEL. THE BALLOONS ON THE NEW SCOPE INFLATE AND ALLOW DR. LEIGHTON TO PULL THE SMALL BOWEL BACK, LIKE A CURTAIN ON A CURTAIN ROD TO GET A GOOD LOOK AT MOST OF THE SMALL BOWEL. IF A SPOT IS BLEEDING, AS ONE WAS IN ANTHONY'S CASE, IT CAN BE TREATED AT THAT TIME. | |
| AND NOT HAVING TO HAVE SURGERY MAKES ANTHONY FEEL LIKE THIS TIME HE WAS DEALT A WINNING HAND. | |
| FOR MEDICAL EDGE, I'M VIVIEN WILLIAMS. | |
Tag: Like many people who have bleeding in the small bowel, Anthony's only symptom was tiredness. The slow loss of blood caused him to become anemic. Iron pills are fixing that. Other causes of bleeding in the small bowel include polyps, ulcers and tumors. For more information on bleeding in your digestive tract, log on to our Web site at ...
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