New York-Driven by innovative devices such as capsule endoscopes, the entire gastrointestinal device market grew to $14.6 billion in 2011, according to healthcare market research publisher Kalorama Information. Capsule endoscopy has been one of the fastest areas of revenue growth for manufacturers, charting 12.9% growth annually since 2007. The finding comes from Kaloramas recent study, The World Market for Gastrointestinal Devices. 

The technology behind capsule endoscopy systems is essentially a pill-form endoscope-a miniaturized video camera which is ingested and delivers video images of the inside of the gastrointestinal tract. Although there are limitations to this type of system-including a lack of manual control by physicians, limitations for use such as with patients with narrow gastrointestinal tracts or suspected obstructions-its benefits are considerable as a non-invasive approach to diagnosing conditions in the small bowel and detecting small pathologies. It is also cost-effective, administered on an outpatient basis and can provide wireless imaging transfer.

"Capsule endoscopy systems have been marketed for a decade, but now we are seeing the impact of second-generation products and new competitors," said Bruce Carlson, publisher of Kalorama Information.

The major companies supplying this niche area include Given Imaging and Olympus Corporation. The main source of revenue for Given Imaging is the PillCam Capsule. The system consists of a miniature video camera inside an ingestible, disposable capsule. The communication outside the body is accomplished by wireless technology and the companys software. Given Imaging originally launched the small bowel (SB) capsule endoscopy platform system in 2001. Currently the company is continuing to roll-out its second generation PillCams. In September 2007, Olympus announced the launch of the Endo Capsule for visualizing small bowel mucosa. It is part of the EnteroPro brand of products designed to be a total solution for physicians. The product offers automatic lighting using six LEDs, two images per second transmission, and recording a time of approximately eight hours.

The advancing technology of capsule endoscopy systems, the increasing number of procedures using the technology, and growing education about the systems will contribute to high growth during the forecast period discussed in Kaloramas report. More information and detailed company profiles can be obtained in the report, The World Market for Gastrointestinal Devices. 

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