Capsule endoscopy interpretation by an endoscopy nurse - a comparative trial.

Area of Science:

• Gastroenterology
• Medical Diagnostics

Background:

• Capsule endoscopy is a standard, non-invasive diagnostic tool for small bowel examination.
• Interpreting capsule endoscopy videos is time-intensive, often requiring up to two hours per patient.
• Increasing financial pressures in healthcare necessitate efficient diagnostic procedures.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the accuracy of capsule endoscopy analysis performed by a trained endoscopy nurse compared to a physician.
• To determine the time-effectiveness of pre-evaluation by nursing staff for capsule endoscopy readings.

Main Methods:

• An experienced endoscopy nurse and a physician independently reviewed 48 capsule endoscopy videos.
• Both reviewers were blinded to patient diagnoses and clinical information.
• An independent physician re-evaluated the marked findings for agreement.

Main Results:

• The nurse's interpretation took longer (63 min) than the physician's (54 min), but the nurse marked more relevant thumbnails (236 vs. 132).
• The nurse missed 6% of lesions, and the physician missed 9%; however, these were clinically insignificant findings in patients with multiple angiectasias.
• Pre-evaluation by the nurse was more cost-effective (13.23 euro) compared to the physician (17.82 euro).

Conclusions:

• Trained endoscopy nurses can accurately identify significant lesions during capsule endoscopy analysis.
• Nurse pre-evaluation of capsule endoscopy videos is a clinically relevant, accurate, and potentially time-saving method.
• This approach offers a cost-effective solution for managing the increasing workload of capsule endoscopy interpretation.