The Effect of Prucalopride on Small Bowel Transit Time in Hospitalized Patients Undergoing Capsule Endoscopy

The inpatient status is a well-known risk factor for incomplete video capsule endoscopy (VCE) examinations due to prolonged transit time. We aimed to evaluate the effect of prucalopride on small bowel transit time for hospitalized patients undergoing VCE.

We included all hospitalized patients who underwent VCE at a tertiary academic center from October 2011 through September 2016. A single 2 mg dose of prucalopride was given exclusively for all patients who underwent VCE between March 2014 and December 2015. VCE studies were excluded if the capsule was retained or endoscopically placed, if other prokinetic agents were given, in cases with technical failure, or if patients had prior gastric or small bowel resection.

442 VCE were identified, of which 68 were performed in hospitalized patients. 54 inpatients were included, of which 29 consecutive patients received prucalopride. The prucalopride group had a significantly shorter small bowel transit time compared to the control group (92 versus 275.5, p < 0.001). There was a trend for a higher completion rate in the prucalopride group (93.1% versus 76%, p = 0.12).

Our results suggest that the administration of prucalopride prior to VCE is a simple and effective intervention to decrease small bowel transit time.