Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Sep 1;73(3):306-313.
doi: 10.1097/MPG.0000000000003198.

Regional Gastrointestinal Motility in Healthy Children

Christian Emil Brinck  1   2 , Esben Bolvig Mark  3 , Cecilie Ejerskov  1 , Klaus Birkelund Johansen  1 , Nanna Sutter  2 , Vincent Schlageter  4 , Asbjørn Mohr Drewes  3 , Klaus Krogh  2
Affiliations

Regional Gastrointestinal Motility in Healthy Children

Christian Emil Brinck et al. J Pediatr Gastroenterol Nutr. .

Abstract

Objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the safety and use of the 3D-Transit system (Motilis SA, Lausanne, Switzerland) and to describe regional gastrointestinal transit times, segmental colonic transit times, and colonic movement patterns in healthy children.

Methods: Twenty-one healthy children (11 girls, median age 10.5 years, range 7-15 years) were included. For evaluation of gastrointestinal transit times and colonic movement patterns, we used the minimally invasive electromagnetic 3D-Transit system. A small electromagnetic capsule (21.5 mm × 8.3 mm) was ingested and tracked through the gastrointestinal tract by a body-worn detector. Regional gastrointestinal transit times were assessed as time between capsule passage of anatomical landmarks. Colonic movement patterns were described and classified based on capsule movement velocity, direction, and distance.

Results: One child could not swallow the capsule and 20 children completed the study without any discomfort or side-effects. Median whole gut transit time was 33.6 (range 10.7-80.5) hours, median gastric emptying time was 1.9 (range 0.1-22.1) hours, median small intestinal transit time was 4.9 (range 1.1-15.1) hours, and median colonic transit time was 26.4 (range 6.8-74.5) hours. Median ascending colon/cecum transit time was 9.7 (range 0.3-48.1) hours, median transverse colon transit time was 5.6 (range 0.0-11.6) hours, median descending colon transit time was 2.6 (range 0.01-22.3) hours, and median sigmoid colon/rectum transit time was 7.5 (range 0.1-31.6) hours. Colonic movement patterns among children corresponded to those previously described in healthy adults.

Conclusions: The 3D-Transit system is a well-tolerated and minimally invasive method for assessment of gastrointestinal motility in children.

Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov NCT03981510.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

V.S. is co-owner of Motilis Medica SA. V.S. contributed with technical information for the protocols for the Danish Ethics Committee and the Danish Medicines Agency. During the study, he was solely involved when technical issues arose with the equipment. The remaining authors report no conflicts of interest.

References

    1. Robin SG, Keller C, Zwiener R, et al. Prevalence of pediatric functional gastrointestinal disorders utilizing the Rome IV criteria. J Pediatr 2018; 195:134–139.
    1. Saps M, Velasco-Benitez CA, Langshaw AH, et al. Prevalence of functional gastrointestinal disorders in children and adolescents: comparison between Rome III and Rome IV criteria. J Pediatr 2018; 199:212–216.
    1. Quitadamo P, Thapar N, Staiano A, et al. Gastrointestinal and nutritional problems in neurologically impaired children. Eur J Paediatr Neurol 2016; 20:810–815.
    1. Khan S, Campo J, Bridge JA, et al. Long-term outcome of functional childhood constipation. Digest Dis Sci 2007; 52:64–69.
    1. Bongers ME, Benninga MA, Maurice-Stam H, et al. Health-related quality of life in young adults with symptoms of constipation continuing from childhood into adulthood. Health Qual Life Outcomes 2009; 7:20.

Publication types

Associated data