Methods and systems for obtaining electromyography (EMG) data from the gastrointestinal tract, of patients, particularly patients who appear to suffer from disorders related to gastrointestinal motility, are known in the prior art and practiced by specialists in the art. Such systems and methods typically are used in a procedure that occurs in a clinical setting, within a time frame of several hours and wherein the patient needs to be substantially in repose. Further, the testing procedure usually asks the patient to adhere to a preliminary schedule of eating, and of eating a standardized meal.
These constraints, however practical and appropriate, nevertheless can limit the scope of data derived from such studies. The data are limited in time frame, that is, a study is only feasible for several hours, during which a patient can tolerate or comply with the constraint on normal physical activity. This limitation can be understood from the perspective that gastrointestinal activity occurs in the context of a daily cycle, and that daily cycle occurs in the context of activities of daily living. Gastrointestinal pain or discomfort also can be cyclical or intermittent throughout the day, of over the course of several days. Such intermittency may or may not be clearly tied to activities associated with the gastrointestinal tract specifically or the more general and varied activities of daily living. Accordingly, signals and patterns of interest may not present themselves in the limited observational window of the clinical test; thus, the diagnostic value of gastrointestinal activity data derived from tests that include such constraints is limited.
Further, such a gastrointestinal EMG study, as currently practiced, is expensive in that it occupies space in the clinic, and it occupies the time of the healthcare provider who is administering the testing procedure. As a consequence of the cost that limits the prevalence of such testing, the testing is generally applied to severe cases of gastrointestinal distress or to cases that are otherwise difficult to diagnose. And further still, the limited use of such testing limits the accumulation of data as a whole; accordingly, it is not possible to acquire population-wide data, which would advance understanding of the relationship between dysfunctional gastrointestinal electrical activity and gastrointestinal disorders.
There is a need in the medical marketplace for systems and methods that are more affordable, and which provide, a more comprehensive view of gastrointestinal activity throughout a day or for longer periods, and which can monitor such activity while the patient is free to conduct the normal activities of daily living.