This article is an open-access article which was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Konosuke Nakaji, Mitsutaka Kumamoto, Mikiko Yodozawa, Kazuki Okahara, Yukinori Nakae, Endoscopy Center, Aishinkai Nakae Hospital, Wakayama-shi 640-8461, Wakayama, Japan
Shigeo Suzumura, Internal Medicine, Japanese Red Cross Urakawa Hospital, Higashichochinomi, Urakawagun Urakawacho 057-0007, Hokkaido, Japan
Author contributions: Nakaji K analyzed the data and wrote the manuscript; Nakaji K, Kumamoto M, Yodozawa M, and Okahara K performed the colon capsule endoscopy and collected the data; Suzumura S supervised the statistical analysis and Nakae Y supervised the study.
Institutional review board statement: The Ethical Review Committee at Aishinkai Nakae Hospital approved this retrospective study on February 12, 2021 (approval No. 015).
Informed consent statement: Informed consent was obtained in the form of an opt-out procedure.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare no conflicts of interest for this article.
Data sharing statement: No additional data are available.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Received: April 28, 2021 Peer-review started: April 28, 2021 First decision: June 17, 2021 Revised: July 8, 2021 Accepted: September 14, 2021 Article in press: September 14, 2021 Published online: October 16, 2021
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
Research background
Colon capsule endoscopy (CCE) is a noninvasive and easy procedure for detecting colorectal lesions when difficult to perform colonoscopy (CS). The incidence of CCE has been increasing due to its noninvasive nature and low risk of infection during the Covid-19 pandemic; however, its follow-up on efficacy remains unknown.
Research motivation
Currently, guidelines recommend that patients with no significant findings on initial CCE should repeat CCE every five years, or follow up with another screening test. However, there is limited evidence in clinical practice.
Research objectives
The study’s main objective was to investigate the follow-up outcomes in Japanese patients without polyp and colonic cancer at the initial CCE.
Research methods
Thirty-one consecutive Japanese patients negative for polyp and cancer lesions on initial CCE were analyzed.
Research results
We propose that researchers conduct a multicenter, prospective, long-term follow-up of initial CCE screening results.
Research conclusions
Our study determined the outcomes of Japanese patients with negative CCE results.
Research perspectives
The mean follow-up period was 3.1 years; CS was determined to be the most common method of follow-up after the initial CCE (n = 20). Five colonic polyps (three in the ascending colon, one in the transverse colon, and one in the descending colon) were identified through follow-up CS; based on the Narrow-band imaging International Colorectal Endoscopic classification, these were classified as type 1 and 2 polyps. Histopathological findings included a hyperplastic polyp in one patient, and adenoma with low grade dysplasia in four patients; no deaths due to colorectal cancer, or severe adverse events, were observed in any patient during follow-up.
