PREPARATION BEFORE PROCEDURE:

• You may need to adjust your medication dosages or stop taking certain medications temporarily. Convey your entire medical history to the doctor. Be sure to mention any allergies you have.
• Before a colonoscopy, you’ll need to empty your colon. Any residue in your colon may obscure the view ofcolon and rectum during colonosopy.To empty your colon, your doctor may ask you to:
  • Drink laxatives
  • Follow a special diet the day before the exam.
  • Use an enema kit.

DURING PROCEDURE:

• You will be asked to lie down on your side on the exam table, usually with your knees drawn towards your chest. Monitors will be connected to you. Mild sedation will be given to help you to relax.
• The doctor will insert a colonoscope into the anus, slowly advancing it into the rectum and colon. The scope is long enough to reach the entire length of your colon.
• Air or carbon dioxide that is pumped into your colon inflates it, which provides a better view.When the scope is moved or air is introduced, you may feel abdominal cramping or the urge to have a bowel movement.
• The tiny camera at the colonoscope tip sends images to an external monitor so that the doctor can study the inside of your colon.
• The doctor can also insert instruments through the channel of the scope to take tissue samples (biopsies) or remove polyps or other areas of abnormal tissue.
• If sites of bleeding are identified, your doctor might control the bleeding through the colonoscope by injecting medications or by cauterization (sealing off bleeding vessels with heat treatment) or by use of small clips. A colonoscopy typically takes about 10-15 minutes.

AFTER COLONOSCOPY:

• You might be asked to stay till the effect of the sedative medication wears off. Even if you feel alert after the procedure, your judgment and reflexes could be impaired for the rest of the day. Hence someone must drive you home and stay with you.
• You might have a mild bloating sensation due to air introduced during colonoscopy. This will disappear as gas passes out.
• Your doctor will explain you the results on the same day although you will have to wait for biopsy reports for a couple of days.
• You should be able to eat after colonoscopy, but your doctor might restrict your diet and activities, especially after polypectomy.

COMPLICATIONS:

A colonoscopy is usually a safe procedure when performed by experienced and well-trained doctors. Rarely, complications of a colonoscopy may include:

• Adverse reaction to the sedative
• Bleeding from the site where a tissue sample (biopsy) was taken or a polyp or other abnormal tissue was removed
• Perforation-A tear in the colon or rectum wall

WHEN TO CALL THE DOCTOR:

• Severe abdominal pain
• Fever and chills
• Rectal bleeding