Fibrocolonoscopy - what is this procedure? You will find the answer to this question below. In addition, information will be presented to your attention about why they are carrying out such a procedure, how to prepare for it, etc.
Fibrocolonoscopy - what is it?
In medical practice, this term is called the modern diagnostic method, which allows you to examine the intestines of the patient. This method is used in many specialized clinics.
The essence of the procedure
Intestinal fibrocolonoscopy is performed to examine the rectum and colon. This procedure is carried out using a special device, the name of which sounds like a fibrocolonoscope. In addition, this setup includes biopsy forceps. Thanks to this, during work, a specialist can take a small piece of tissue of the organ under investigation and diagnose it for the presence of malignant tumors or other diseases. The device also contains in its kit brushes for cleaning, valves for cylinders and eyepieces designed to examine the condition of the colon and rectum. In general, a fibrocolonoscope is similar to a combination of flexible fiber bundles that tend to conduct light. Using such a device, doctors can even perform operations without large incisions. So, during the study, specialists remove polyps or tumors from the colon or rectum.
Is such a method dangerous?
Intestinal fibrocolonoscopy is a completely painless and safe method for the patient’s health and life. Despite the fact that it is rather difficult to carry out such a diagnosis, it is this method that allows doctors to accurately determine the condition of the rectum and colon, whose length is about 2 meters.
Instrument Features
Is fibrocolonoscopy and colonoscopy the same thing? Very often, patients ask such a question to their doctors. It should be noted that there is no difference between these terms. They are only synonyms. As a result of the fact that this device only works on a halogen or xenon lamp, it cannot burn the intestinal mucosa. This is the particular safety of the method.
Additional examination for fibrocolonoscopy
Fibrocolonoscopy - what is this procedure? The answer to this question we gave a little higher. But before conducting such a diagnosis in practice, some specialists prescribe an X-ray examination to their patients. This method is called irrigoscopy. If this procedure did not allow an accurate diagnosis, then 2 days later fibrocolonoscopy is performed.
What is the procedure for?
Fibrocolonoscopy (reviews of this diagnostic method will be discussed below) is performed in patients with Hirschsprung’s disease, Crohn’s disease, colitis, as well as with suspected presence of tumors, polyps or colon cancer and for detection of any foreign bodies in it. Unlike other methods, this method allows you to pinch off a piece of tissue from the internal organ for its further research. Another major goal of fibrocolonoscopy is the elimination of a benign tumor in the colon. So, existing polyps can be removed directly during the examination.
Intestinal fibrocolonoscopy: preparation for the procedure
Before examining the intestines, specialists must make sure that the body is completely cleaned of food debris and feces. In this regard, before conducting such a procedure, patients should definitely have cleansing enemas. Also, laxatives may be prescribed to the patient.
Special preparation guidelines
Patients who suffer from frequent constipation and hemorrhoids should be especially careful about the rectum before examining it. For them, preparation for the procedure should begin in the 3rd day. To do this, they should adhere to a strict diet and exclude from their diet fruits and vegetables (especially fresh), as well as brown bread, legumes and any kind of cabbage. All these days, the patient is not recommended to stop taking laxatives. If the patient needs to increase the dose of such drugs, then it is advisable to consult with a gastroenterologist in advance.
How is the procedure going?
Is fibrocolonoscopy performed under general anesthesia? Patient reviews about this nuance are very diverse. Someone says that local anesthesia is required, but someone carried out this procedure without it. Experts say that such a diagnostic method does not provide for anesthesia. Although in some cases anesthesia is still used (if the patient has cracks in the anus). So how is fibrocolonoscopy performed? First, a specialist examines the rectum with palpation. After that, he inserts the tube of the device through the anus. It is slowly moved throughout the gut, and then air is supplied. This is necessary in order to straighten all the folds of the intestine. During air supply, the patient may feel slight discomfort in the form of bloating and the need for bowel movements. Thus, specialists make an examination, and in case of urgent need, they nibble off the tissues or remove polyps, after which the tube is slowly removed.
Recommendations after the examination
After this procedure, the patient is almost immediately allowed to eat and drink. If gases have accumulated in the intestines, and the patient feels an overcrowded stomach, then he is advised to take about 8 tablets of activated carbon (white or black). By the way, such a drug can be pre-diluted with 100 milliliters of ordinary drinking water. After fibrocolonoscopy, some specialists advise their patients to lie on their stomachs for 3 or 4 hours, rising only to the needs of the toilet.
With what frequency can the procedure be carried out?
The number of such procedures depends entirely on whether a person has a tendency to cancer or not. If there are cases of cancer in the patient’s family, then fibrocolonoscopy should be done once every three years. Although with age, this frequency is desirable to increase. According to statistics, the risk of cancer in 70% of cases develops due to the formation of polyps in the colon or rectum. That is why, in the presence of such formations, it is better to diagnose the digestive tract much more often than once every 5 or 10 years. This fact is explained by the fact that a malignant tumor from the polyp develops over 3-4 years. Sometimes fibrocolonoscopy is performed every year. As a rule, this happens in those cases when during the first procedure polyps were not detected, but there was a suspicion of their presence. After all, if such formations are not more than 10 mm, then using fibrocolonoscopy it is rather difficult to detect them.
Does it hurt or not?
Now you know about fibrocolonoscopy - what it is. Many patients to whom she was prescribed are afraid to carry out this procedure. And it is in vain. After all, such a diagnosis is almost painless and eliminates the likely development of life-threatening neoplasms. That is why, if your attending physician has prescribed this examination, it is better to undergo it, since a timely detected deviation is eliminated much faster and easier than a neglected disease.