Complications Before, During, After Procedure

Written by WebMD Editorial Contributors

• Belly Pain or Discomfort
• Bleeding
• A Bad Reaction to Anesthesia
• Postpolypectomy Electrocoagulation Syndrome
• Infection
• Perforated Intestine
• Colonoscopy Prep Risks
• Post-Colonoscopy Complications
• More

A colonoscopy lets your doctor check the insides of your colon and rectum for cancer and polyps — growths that can be early signs of cancer. It saves lives, so follow your doctor’s recommendations on when to have one.

They’ll give you a sedative to put you to sleep and use a long, flexible tube to look inside your colon. It has a light and a camera inside to help them see what’s going on.

It’s a fairly safe exam. On average, there are only two serious complications for every 1,000 procedures. The risks of a colonoscopy include:

This is the most common side effect of colonoscopy. You might feel cramping or bloating afterward.

Your doctor may use air to inflate your colon so they can get a better view. They might use water or a suction device as well as certain surgical tools to take off a polyp. All these things can move and stretch your colon, so you might feel uncomfortable for 1 or 2 days afterward. The sedatives may also make you nauseated. If you have pain or vomiting, call your doctor right away.

You could notice blood from your rectum or in your poop after a colonoscopy. Most of the time, this happens because your doctor had to take a tissue sample or remove a polyp. Call them as soon as possible if the bleeding won’t stop or if there’s a lot of blood. Certain medications, such as vitamins and over-the-counter painkillers like aspirin, can raise your chance of bleeding. If you take them, be sure to tell your doctor before the test.

You may feel woozy or shaky when you wake up after the test. Some people can have serious reactions to the medications that put you to sleep, such as heart or breathing problems. Your medical team is trained to identify and treat these complications. Tell them before the test if you’re allergic to any medicines or have ever had a bad reaction to anesthesia.

If your doctor needs to cut off a polyp, they’ll use a tool with an electrical current to seal the area. It’s rare, but this current can go too deep, burning and inflaming the tissues. This might cause belly pain, fever, and a fast heart rate. Most people feel better after taking antibiotics for 2 or 3 days.

Colonoscopy tools can be hard to clean and disinfect. Rarely, they may carry bacteria such as E. coli, Klebsiella, or Enterobacter, or viruses like hepatitis B or C. 

The tool that your doctor uses in a colonoscopy could push too hard against your colon. This can cause a small tear. Your doctor may need to repair it with surgery.

Before a colonoscopy, you’ll need to empty your colon so your doctor can get a clear picture. They’ll give you directions to use a strong laxative as bowel preparation or “prep. ” Certain kinds of these medications can cause dehydration or electrolyte problems in some people:

• Older adults
• People who have heart, kidney, or liver problems
• People who have inflammatory bowel disease
• Pregnant women

Call your doctor right away if you have any of these symptoms after your test:

• Severe pain or cramping in your belly
• A hard belly
• Trouble passing gas or pooping
• Fever
• Dizziness
• Vomiting
• Frequent or severely bloody bowel movements
• Rectal bleeding that won’t stop, or bleeding more than a couple of tablespoons

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Complications Before, During, After Procedure

Written by WebMD Editorial Contributors

• Belly Pain or Discomfort
• Bleeding
• A Bad Reaction to Anesthesia
• Postpolypectomy Electrocoagulation Syndrome
• Infection
• Perforated Intestine
• Colonoscopy Prep Risks
• Post-Colonoscopy Complications
• More

A colonoscopy lets your doctor check the insides of your colon and rectum for cancer and polyps — growths that can be early signs of cancer. It saves lives, so follow your doctor’s recommendations on when to have one.

They’ll give you a sedative to put you to sleep and use a long, flexible tube to look inside your colon. It has a light and a camera inside to help them see what’s going on.

It’s a fairly safe exam. On average, there are only two serious complications for every 1,000 procedures. The risks of a colonoscopy include:

This is the most common side effect of colonoscopy. You might feel cramping or bloating afterward.

Your doctor may use air to inflate your colon so they can get a better view. They might use water or a suction device as well as certain surgical tools to take off a polyp. All these things can move and stretch your colon, so you might feel uncomfortable for 1 or 2 days afterward. The sedatives may also make you nauseated. If you have pain or vomiting, call your doctor right away.

You could notice blood from your rectum or in your poop after a colonoscopy. Most of the time, this happens because your doctor had to take a tissue sample or remove a polyp. Call them as soon as possible if the bleeding won’t stop or if there’s a lot of blood. Certain medications, such as vitamins and over-the-counter painkillers like aspirin, can raise your chance of bleeding. If you take them, be sure to tell your doctor before the test.

You may feel woozy or shaky when you wake up after the test. Some people can have serious reactions to the medications that put you to sleep, such as heart or breathing problems. Your medical team is trained to identify and treat these complications. Tell them before the test if you’re allergic to any medicines or have ever had a bad reaction to anesthesia.

If your doctor needs to cut off a polyp, they’ll use a tool with an electrical current to seal the area. It’s rare, but this current can go too deep, burning and inflaming the tissues. This might cause belly pain, fever, and a fast heart rate. Most people feel better after taking antibiotics for 2 or 3 days.

Colonoscopy tools can be hard to clean and disinfect. Rarely, they may carry bacteria such as E. coli, Klebsiella, or Enterobacter, or viruses like hepatitis B or C. 

The tool that your doctor uses in a colonoscopy could push too hard against your colon. This can cause a small tear. Your doctor may need to repair it with surgery.

Before a colonoscopy, you’ll need to empty your colon so your doctor can get a clear picture. They’ll give you directions to use a strong laxative as bowel preparation or “prep.” Certain kinds of these medications can cause dehydration or electrolyte problems in some people:

• Older adults
• People who have heart, kidney, or liver problems
• People who have inflammatory bowel disease
• Pregnant women

Call your doctor right away if you have any of these symptoms after your test:

• Severe pain or cramping in your belly
• A hard belly
• Trouble passing gas or pooping
• Fever
• Dizziness
• Vomiting
• Frequent or severely bloody bowel movements
• Rectal bleeding that won’t stop, or bleeding more than a couple of tablespoons

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Colonoscopy

HomeFor patientsDiagnosticsTypes of examinationsEndoscopic examinationsColonoscopy

Colonoscopy (videocolonoscopy, FCC) is a modern instrumental examination of the inner surface of the large intestine using an optical device – a colonoscope. Colonoscopy is the most modern and accurate diagnostic method that allows to detect malignant and benign neoplasms of the rectum and colon, nonspecific inflammatory diseases (ulcerative colitis, Crohn’s disease), as well as congenital anomalies in the development of the colon. Such an examination provides sufficient information about the tone of the intestine and the ability to contract. This diagnostic method allows not only to assess the condition of the intestinal mucosa, but also to make a targeted biopsy from a suspicious area in order to obtain a morphological verification of the process.

The method is the basis of colorectal cancer screening.

Sigmoidoscopy is a diagnostic method in which a visual examination of the mucous membrane of the rectum and, in some cases, the distal sigmoid colon is performed. The study is performed with a rigid (rectoscope) or flexible endoscope (colonoscope). Specialists of the Department of Endoscopy of the N. N. Petrov National Medical Research Center of Oncology recommend that patients undergo rectosigmoscopy, during which the endoscopist examines not only the rectum, but also the sigmoid colon completely before it passes into the descending colon. At the same time, we draw the attention of patients to the fact that this procedure does not involve the assessment of the mucosa of the blind, ascending, transverse colon and descending colon, while the pathological process can be localized in these unexamined sections.

Indications for routine diagnostic colonoscopy are:

• Presence of pus, mucus and blood in the stool
• Chronic diarrhea and constipation
• Pain in the abdomen along the colon, bloating
• Subfebrile condition (fever over a long period) of unclear etiology,
• Slimming
• Unexplained anemia
• Sensation of a foreign body in the rectum
• Benign and malignant neoplasms of the colon diagnosed by other studies (irrigoscopy, CT, MRI)
• Search for primary tumor if metastases are found
• Evaluation of the effectiveness of conservative or surgical treatment
• Screening for colon cancer

Contraindications for the procedure:

• acute myocardial infarction and decompensated cardiopulmonary failure
• stroke
• fulminant colitis
• acute infectious process of any localization
• acute diverticulitis
• aortic aneurysm
• tense ascites

85% of colon cancer patients are over 60 years of age. According to the recommendation of the World Health Organization, a colonoscopy should be performed for every healthy person after 55 years of age once every 10 years. If there is an increased risk of the disease in the family (in first-degree relatives, especially if the patient developed colon cancer before the age of 45), the first preventive colonoscopy should be performed 10 years before the age at which cancer was detected in relatives. If certain complaints or indications appear, then a colonoscopy should be carried out immediately

Preparation for colonoscopy: http://www.niioncologii.ru/preparation#ei

Colonoscopy – does it hurt or not?

Most patients’ doubts about the need for a colonoscopy are based on fear of the pain they are expected to endure. Such different and conflicting reviews about the procedure are due to different pain thresholds and congenital structural features of the gastrointestinal tract.

As a rule, the examination does not cause significant pain in the patient, therefore it is performed without anesthesia. Some discomfort may occur when air is injected and the colonoscope passes through intestinal flexures, such as the hepatic and splenic junctions of the colon. But these sensations are usually tolerable. With good preparation of the patient, the procedure usually lasts 15-20 minutes

Patients with abdominal adhesive disease, as well as those who have undergone major abdominal and pelvic surgery, the procedure can be very painful and lengthy. In such situations, the examination is carried out under anesthesia.

The endoscopist will inform you about the results of the examination immediately after the examination, and when taking a biopsy, the morphological conclusion will be ready in 8–12 days

You can eat and drink immediately after the procedure, and food after colonoscopy does not require any restrictions. If the patient still has a feeling of bloating, you can take 10 tablets of activated charcoal, previously crushed and dissolved in half a glass of warm water.

Possible complications of colonoscopy

In general, colonoscopy is a fairly safe method of examination, which rarely leads to serious complications.

Seek medical attention as soon as possible if you develop symptoms such as:

• Temperature above 38 C

hours or days after your colonoscopy

• Abdominal pains
• Severe nausea and vomiting
• Profuse bleeding from the rectum
• Severe weakness, dizziness, loss of consciousness.

Colonoscopy myths

Colonoscopy is the gold standard for examining people over 45 years of age. In addition, this study is recognized as the most informative method for diagnosing inflammatory and oncological diseases of the intestinal tract. However, due to fear of pain and shame, as well as difficulties in preparation, many refuse the procedure. Alisa Olegovna Checheta, an endoscopist at the SOVA clinic, dispels all the myths associated with colonoscopy.

In fact, there is no pain: patients are not cut, scratched, or removed. It will be unpleasant, because air is forced inside to examine the intestines, and a feeling of bloating (bursting) appears. After the manipulation, all the air introduced into the gastrointestinal tract is removed, and the discomfort disappears.

Some soreness is possible when the endoscope passes through the loops and corners of the intestine (after all, the intestine bends), but this is quite tolerable. Of course, a lot depends on the individual structure of the gastrointestinal tract and the pain threshold, but, believe me, toothache or pain with otitis media is much stronger.

And of course, the doctor takes all measures to reduce discomfort.

Separately, it should be said about the possibility of conducting a study under medical sleep (controlled sedation). This eliminates discomfort and “uncomfortable” moments.

In our clinic “SOVA” in Voronezh, you can perform a colonoscopy “in your sleep”. The anesthesiologist calculates the dose of anesthesia, taking into account the patient’s age, ECG readings, weight, blood pressure, and other data. A person does not feel anything during the procedure, after it he quickly comes to his senses and can soon do the necessary things, go home.

Someone is embarrassed to go to a mammologist, it is inconvenient for someone to complain about moles in the intimate area, and some do their best to delay a visit to a gynecologist and urologist. But that doesn’t mean they’re doing the right thing, does it?

Same with colonoscopy. This is the same event as examining the oral cavity at the dentist or examining the hair under a microscope at the trichologist, only it requires more thorough preparation on the part of the patient. Endoscopists have consciously chosen their profession and are ready for any surprises from the perineum. In medicine, there is nothing at all to be ashamed of or to be silent about. Doctors specifically learn to speak on “uncomfortable” topics and study the human body in great detail.

However, if the patient is too shy, stiff, then the procedure will be more uncomfortable and it will take more time to calm down, relax and let the doctor do his job.

If the subject cannot overcome his shyness, is too worried and worried, then the use of sedation can be offered.

It should be understood that theoretically, with any medical research, there are risks of complications. But during a colonoscopy, if the doctor is sufficiently qualified, the risk of damage to the colon is minimal.

The study proceeds as follows. The client undresses to the waist, lies on his side on the couch and draws his legs. After local or general anesthesia, the doctor inserts the endoscope into the anus and advances it into the colon. In this case, with one hand, the doctor palpates (palpates) the abdominal cavity to make sure everything is going right. And he closely watches the image that is displayed on the monitor thanks to the colonoscope camera.

The chances of complications arising from such manipulations are extremely low.

This is an individual question. Discomfort can indeed be felt due to residual air inside the colon. But it usually goes away in two or three hours.

But do not forget about the recommendations of the endoscopist on nutrition: within a day or two after a colonoscopy, you should not eat vegetables, fruits, and dairy products in large quantities. It is better to return to the usual system of nutrition gradually.

Yes, there are dosage nuances, you have to follow the medication schedule, but it just seems complicated. Even talking about preparation is longer and more difficult than doing it.

The main thing is to follow a slag-free diet 2-3 days before the study (the doctor will definitely give a detailed memo) and take laxatives exactly on schedule. With the correct use of drugs, the intestines are well cleansed, cleansing enemas do not have to be done before the examination.

Previously, drug preparation for colonoscopy was more difficult, the only drug was Fortrans, which was diluted in large amounts of water and was unpleasant in taste.