NYUAD researcher and colleagues develop novel “Smart Pills”

NYUAD researcher and colleagues develop novel “Smart Pills”

- The ingestible pills utilize magnetic fields to track movement through the Gastrointestinal tract with higher resolution and accuracy

Abu Dhabi, UAE – A team of researchers led by Khalil Ramadi, Assistant Professor of Bioengineering at NYU Abu Dhabi (NYUAD), have developed a new, non-invasive system to facilitate the diagnosis and treatment of gastrointestinal motility disorders. To track the movement of an ingestible “smart pill” through the Gastrointestinal (GI) tract, the researchers have generated 3D magnetic field gradients using high-frequency electromagnetic coils that encode each spatial point with a distinct magnetic field magnitude. The field magnitude is measured and transmitted by the “smart pill” to determine its precise location, which is then communicated to a smartphone using Bluetooth technology.

Existing “smart pills” do not offer the large field-of-view (FOV), high spatial resolution, and fully wireless operation that the 3D magnetic field gradient developed by the researchers allows for. This new technology holds the potential for future use in clinical applications such as more accurate and efficient diagnosis of gastrointestinal disorders and the precise targeting of therapeutic interventions and minimally-invasive procedures.

The ingestible wireless device senses and transmits its local magnetic field to an outside receiver. The magnetic field is applied by electromagnets that