Study of the magnetic content movement present, in the large intestine

A study of the mechanical activity of the large intestine using remanent magnetization (RM) measurement of ingested magnetic tracers is presented. A fluxgate magnetometer is employed to record the movements of magnetic tracers previously ingested by the subject and contained in the right colon. An intense short magnetic pulse magnetizes the magnetic tracers producing a RM and the magnetic content movement in the right colon is assessed by the variations of the RM. The method was capable of revealing both the stimulatory effect of the ingestion of a meal and the reducing effect of an anti-cholinergic drug on the colonic transit in normal subjects. (C) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.