Location of lesions responsible for blood loss in the GI tract
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Location of lesions responsible for blood loss in the gastrointestinal (GI) tract
IRAS ID
246701
Contact name
Mark McAlindon
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS FT
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
STH20311, STH20311
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 0 months, 1 days
Research summary
The purpose of this study is to examine the prevalence, location and nature of lesions responsible for iron deficiency in the gastrointestinal tract. Iron deficiency anaemia affects 2-5% of the adult population and accounts for between 4-13% of gastroenterology referrals as GI blood loss is considered the commonest cause in men and non-menstruating women. Single visit upper and lower endoscopic investigation is recommended. Capsule endoscopy is the accepted gold standard modality for small bowel investigation and is extremely well tolerated. How often the small bowel is responsible for blood loss is unknown and probably underestimated. This study aims to report on the prevalence of lesions in entire gastrointestinal tract by endoscopy in patients with iron deficiency anaemia. This is novel as there has been no such study reporting pan enteric pathology by endoscopy in unselected patients with iron deficiency since the advent of Capsule Endoscopy. If there are significant synchronous pathologies in the small bowel it may be that small bowel Capsule Endoscopy should become part of first line investigation. Should magnetically assisted capsule endoscopy prove to be sensitive in upper GI pathology detection when compared to gastroscopy, it may have a role in investigating the stomach and small bowel simultaneously. Patients referred to gastroenterology outpatients for investigation of iron deficiency will be invited to take part in the study. Patients will be recruited in the primary care or outpatient setting from the Sloan Medical Centre, or the Royal Hallamshire Hospital/Northern General Hospital outpatients departments. Patients who have been referred for conventional upper and lower GI investigation to investigate their iron deficiency anemia will be invited to undergo a magnetically assisted capsule endoscopy procedure to examine the upper GI tract and the small bowel. If in agreement to enter the study, written consent will be obtained and bowel preparation dispensed
REC name
North West - Preston Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
18/NW/0588
Date of REC Opinion
14 Sep 2018
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion