Constipation is one of the most common symptoms of digestive
disorders, affecting almost 3-27 % of the population. Pre-dominantly,
this affects the elderly and females & leads to degraded quality of life. Constipation
is defined as less than 3 bowel movements per week along with stool that is
hard, lumpy leading to straining, difficult and incomplete defecation.
As already mentioned, constipation is a symptom, not a disease
itself, there are several risk factors medical, dietary and lifestyle that can
lead to constipation. Though there are several management therapies available
to treat constipation, but chronic constipation still leads to frequent hospital
visits and relapse of symptoms. Here we are going to update you about a novel treatment
therapy that recently got FDA approval for treatment of chronic constipation.
The new therapy is a “drug free vibrating capsule”, named VIBRANT, designed
for management of idiopathic chronic constipation when initial therapy with laxatives
fails. The capsule doesn’t contain any drug, but it vibrates inside the gi tract.
It targets the biological clock and resets it to normalize the circadian rhythm,
which leads to resolution of constipation. As per the team behind, Vibrant
System, results are very optimistic in phase 3 trial.
In comparison to a placebo group, nearly twice as many
patients receiving the vibrating capsule had at least one more full,
spontaneous bowel movement each week (relative to baseline) (40.5% vs. 22.9%,
respectively, P=0.0011). Additionally, compared to the controls, twice as many
patients on the Vibrant System (23.4%) had at least two more full bowel motions
each week.
No significant adverse events were recorded, however adverse events with the vibrating capsule were less common than those in the placebo group (6.5% vs. 9.4%).
How Vibrating Capsule system works:
The capsules come with a pod, before taking the pills, the
user has to place the capsule in the pod which activates it following which the
user ingests the pill just similar to a regular medicine. There is also a
companion app which helps following and monitoring of the treatment.
Vibrant system is likely to be available in the USA by early
next year, followed by other regions.
FAQ’S
How long does it take for it to start working?
observe effects from the mechanical stimulation that reactivates peristaltic
activity within 1 to 8 weeks of starting treatment.
having Complete Spontaneous Bowel Movements in a more noticeable way than they
had before, and they continued throughout the phase 3 study.
What is the circadian rhythm & biological clock?
According to studies, people with a disturbed biological
clock frequently have gastrointestinal symptoms or diseases, particularly constipation.
variations in colonic transit after waking or eating, as well as stool
frequency. The gastrointestinal system may benefit therapeutically from
enhancing the biological clock.