Colonoscopy Flashcards
What is Colonoscopy?
Colonoscopy is a medical outpatient procedure that allows a gastroenterologist like Dr. Khodadadian to visually examine the lining of your large intestine from the inside. This procedure often is performed to test for colon cancer and to check for pre-cancerous polyps, which can be removed at the same time. Dr. Khodadadian uses a long, flexible tube called a colonoscope. This device, about as thick around as a finger, has a video camera on its tip and sends images to a video monitor, where the doctor can observe its trip from your rectum to the deepest part of your colon.
Why You May Need a Colonoscopy?
Despite the prevalence of screening, colon cancer is among the leading causes of cancer deaths in the United States, claiming about 50,000 lives a year. Increased awareness and prevention could save at least half that number. Colonoscopy is a screening test to catch cancer early, while it is still treatable and to detect and remove colonic polyps which may develop into cancers.
The procedure also can be used to evaluate the cause of such symptoms as rectal bleeding, chronic diarrhea and chronic constipation. By visually inspecting the inside lining of your colon, a trained GI doctor who specializes in colonoscopies like Dr. Khodadadian can assess its overall health and look for signs of other medical issues.
Colonoscopy Preparations
The NYC gastroenterologist will provide you with clear preparation instructions to explain the dietary restrictions and the cleansing solution routine you need to follow before your procedure. Basically, you need to fast the day before your exam and consume a large volume of a laxative solution. See the preparation instructions for more details. Preparation instructions are individualized to allow for a proper cleaning if your colon prior to the exam. Your colon must be completely clean so your colonoscopy can be as comprehensive and accurate as possible. Follow the preparation instructions fully.
Medication Questions
Tell Dr. Khodadadian which medications you’re currently taking — particularly insulin, aspirin products, anticoagulants (such as blood thinners like warfarin or heparin), arthritis medications, iron supplements or clopidogrel. Also tell the doctor about any medication allergies you may have.
You should continue to take your medications as usual unless the doctor specifically instructs you not to. Some medicines can interfere with your preparation or with the examination.
Colonoscopy Procedure
Typically, our anesthesiologist will give you a sedative or painkiller so you can relax during the procedure. Colonoscopy rarely causes much pain, but the sedation will help you better tolerate any discomfort, such as pressure, bloating or cramping.
You lie on your side or your back while the doctor slowly inserts the colonoscope into your rectum and advances it along your large intestine to examine its lining. While video from the device displays on a monitor in real time, Dr. Khodadadian controls its movements — where he wants it to go, where he wants to look — by using the controls on the handle. Dr. Khodadadian examines the lining of your colon again as he withdraws the device.
The procedure usually takes 45 minutes or less and is performed at our JCAHO certified office based surgery unit located in Midtown in new york city (nyc). Due to the preparation and recovery time, however, plan on spending two to three hours at the office. If you’ve been sedated, you will need someone responsible to drive you home after the procedure.
Colonoscopy Results
The the NYC colonoscopy specialist doesn’t find anything in the lining of your colon, that doesn’t mean the colonoscopy was a waste of time. These results will be used as a baseline for future tests. If you’re over 50 years of age with no history of colon cancer, you should still have a colonoscopy during the surveillance period your doctor recommends. Certain ethnic groups, including african americans should be screened at younger ages as well as patients with family history of colon cancer or early polyps.
If Dr. Khodadadian with offices in Midtown and Upper East Side, NYC finds an area that he wants to study further, he can pass instruments through the colonoscope to retrieve a biopsy — a small tissue sample — to have analyzed. Biopsies can help identify many conditions; the doctor may take one even if he doesn’t suspect cancer.
Dr. Khodadadian looks specifically for polyps during your colonoscopy. Polyps are abnormal growths in the colon lining that vary in size from a tiny dot to several inches. They usually are non-cancerous, but he will destroy them or remove them during the examination and send them to the laboratory for analysis. Because cancer begins in polyps, removing them is a first step toward preventing colon cancer. You won’t feel any pain during this process.
Dr. Khodadadian removes polyps with the biopsy instruments or with wire loops called snares. Using a technique called “snare polypectomy,” he passes a wire loop through the colonoscope and circles the polyp at its base. He then removes the polyp from your intestinal wall with an electrical current. Snare polypectomy is painless.
Recovering from a Colonoscopy
While the sedatives wear off after the procedure, the office staff will monitor your recovery. You may experience some minor cramping or bloating due to air introduced into your colon during the examination, but it should pass quickly. Before you are released, Dr. Khodadadian will explain what, if anything, he found, although he won’t yet know the results of any biopsies.
Again, if you’ve been given sedatives for your colonoscopy, you must have someone drive you home and stay with you before you can be released. Even if you feel alert, your judgment and reflexes may be impaired for the next 12-24 hours. You can eat after the procedure.
Colonoscopy Complications
Colonoscopy and polypectomy are generally safe procedures when performed by trained and experienced gastroenterologists like Dr. Khodadadian. Complications are rare, but the most severe is a perforation of your colon lining. This may require surgery to repair.
Other complications include minor bleeding from the site of a biopsy or polypectomy. The bleeding often stops by itself, but the doctor can control it through the colonoscope during the procedure.
Symptoms from complications include severe abdominal pain, fever, chills or rectal bleeding (although minor bleeding may last for several days after the procedure without being dangerous). While these complications are uncommon, you should contact Dr. Khodadadian immediately if you notice them.
