A novel approach to studying human orogastric transit with an ingestible bionic device. An early feasibility study

<i>Objective.</i>A novel bionic esophageal device was developed to assess human swallowing function and orogastric transit, aiming ultimately to improve diagnostics for dysphagia. This miniaturized, tethered device records axial pressures, orientation, and acceleration during esophageal transit, thereby providing a dynamic view of the swallowing process.<i>Approach</i><b>.</b>In first-in-human feasibility tests, two healthy volunteers safely swallowed the device repeatedly in seated and supine positions.<i>Main Results</i>. The system produced transit and pressure profiles comparable to existing technologies, with prolonged transit times observed in the supine position, e.g. transit time in seated position was median 6 s (6-23) and in the supine posture median 233 s [142-317]).<i>Significance</i>. These findings support the potential of this bionic device for studying esophageal motility in physiological studies as well as pathological conditions in dysphagia patients, and for future translation to untethered capsule systems capable of full gastrointestinal transit analysis.