A new, ingestible, tiny robotic camera about the size of a multivitamin pill was demonstrated at the annual TED conference in Vancouver. Remote control of devices could eliminate invasive medical procedures.
With current technology, exploration of the digestive tract requires a highly invasive endoscopic procedure, in which a camera on the end of a string is inserted down the patient’s throat and into the stomach.
But the robotic pill, developed by Hayward, Calif.-based Endiatx, aims to be the first motorized alternative to the procedure. Patients fast for a day and then swallow the PillBot with plenty of water. PillBot is like a miniature submarine, piloted via a wireless remote control inside the body. After the examination, it will be naturally discharged from the body.
For company co-founder Dr. Vivek Kumbhari, professor of medicine and chair of gastroenterology and hepatology at the Mayo Clinic, this is the latest step in his goal of democratizing previously complex medicine.
If procedure-based diagnostics can be moved from the hospital to the home, “then I think we’ve achieved that goal,” he said. The new setting will require fewer medical staff and eliminate the need for anesthesia, resulting in “a safer and more comfortable approach.”
Kumbhari said the technology could also make medical care more efficient, allowing people to receive care earlier in the course of their illnesses.
For co-founder Alex Luebke, tiny robotic pills could be transformative for rural areas around the world where medical facilities are limited.
“Especially in developing countries, there is a lack of access” to complex medical procedures, he said. “So being able to have the technology, collect all the information and provide you with solutions even in remote areas – that’s the way to do it.”
Luebke said information from PillBot can be transmitted later if there is no immediate access to the Internet.
The duo also uses artificial intelligence to provide an initial diagnosis, which is then followed by a treatment plan by a doctor.
Joel Bervell, known as the “Medical MythBuster” to his millions of social media followers, is a fourth-year medical student at Washington State University. He said the advantage of this technology is that it can be easily used in remote and rural communities.
Many patients “quite literally travel hundreds of miles just to get an appointment. Using a pill that doesn’t require a trip to the doctor “will change their lives.”
The tiny robotic pill is undergoing trials and could soon be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which developers expect to win in 2025. The pill is expected to be widely available in 2026.
Kumbhari hopes the technology can be expanded to the intestines, vascular system, heart, liver, brain and other parts of the body. Eventually, he hopes, this will allow hospitals to perform more urgent medical care and surgeries.
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