In this article, we will consider how intestinal colonoscopy is performed - under anesthesia or without anesthesia. The lifestyle of modern people affects the nature of the most common diseases. Therefore, due to unhealthy nutrition, along with a sedentary lifestyle, doctors are increasingly registering diseases in the lower areas of the digestive system. But if before doctors could examine the intestines only by palpation, feeling the stomach of patients, then modern specialists have a wider choice of diagnostic methods.
Many people ask, which is better - colonoscopy with or without anesthesia?
Colonoscopy as part of the diagnosis
A progressive way of assessing the general condition of the colon in humans today is a procedure called colonoscopy. It is an examination of the digestive system of patients through a video camera, which is placed on the end of a flexible tube of a special device - an endoscope. During this procedure, the doctor, centimeter by centimeter, examines the patient’s intestines from the inside, collecting samples along the way for analysis, and also removes polyps, which are various changes in the mucous membrane. Such polyps can degenerate into a malignant tumor. It is important to know how to prepare for a colonoscopy. About it below.
When this procedure was only introduced into the practice of state clinics, this manipulation was considered painful. Any specialist could cause significant discomfort to the patient during the administration of the tube. But at the same time, such a procedure did not involve any anesthesia. It is for this reason that many people, when they heard about the need for such an examination, tried to find a possible alternative because of fear of pain. Where to do a colonoscopy, not everyone knows.
In fact, it is possible to examine the colon with the help of irrigoscopy, which is an X-ray examination, in which a contrast agent is injected into the cavity of the organ through an enema. Computed tomography is also used . The disadvantages of these methods include radiation exposure to the patient along with less informational content, which today is recognized worldwide as the gold standard for screening for colon cancer.
Let’s figure out which is better - a colonoscopy under anesthesia or without it?
Colonoscopy and the use of anesthesia
The problem associated with the painfulness of this procedure has already lost its relevance, as modern medical centers suggest its carrying out under anesthesia. The introduction of medications before performing the manipulation involves a different degree of pain relief:
- Colonoscopy under local anesthesia suggests that the tip of the endoscope is lubricated with a substance that slightly reduces discomfort during insertion of the tube into the rectum. True, the feeling of pain during the procedure, as a rule, can be caused not by direct contact of the device with the mucosa, but by the injection of air into the intestines. Unfortunately, local anesthesia does not relieve this discomfort.
- Colonoscopy during sleep. For this version of the procedure, superficial anesthesia is used, in other words, sedation. The patient is administered a drug that has a hypnotic effect. Under its influence, the unpleasant sensations are significantly dulled, and the examination itself is completely painless. It does not require the use of an anesthesia machine. Also, you will not have to stay in the clinic for a long time after a colonoscopy, since the effects of anesthesia pass very quickly, and there are no memories of the procedure.
- Colonoscopy using general anesthesia. This kind of diagnosis is carried out in the operating room. Patients under the control of an anesthesiologist are immersed in deep sleep. This dream usually lasts a little longer compared to the procedure itself. This option is usually used to examine people with a low threshold of pain sensitivity, as well as against the background of adhesive bowel disease, when they make a colonoscopy of a child under the age of twelve. Consider what indications this procedure has.
Indications for colonoscopy using anesthesia
People often ask: "Which is better - a colonoscopy with or without anesthesia?" Most often, patients prefer to opt for such a diagnosis using anesthesia in the form of sedation. This method is painless and eliminates the likely complications of general anesthesia. As a rule, a referral to this examination is issued by the attending physician-therapist or a specialist who notices deviations in the state of health of his patient. So, a colonoscopy under anesthesia is prescribed in a number of the following situations:
- low hemoglobin in the general analysis, that is, anemia without any obvious reason;
- bleeding in the intestines or black stool;
- problems associated with bowel movements, which are expressed in chronic constipation, diarrhea, sensation of a foreign body in the rectal region, and the like;
- a regular feeling of fullness of the intestine, which is accompanied by increased gas formation along with chronic digestive upset;
- unexplained weight loss along with increased fatigue;
- Exceeded the rate of specific tumor markers as a result of a blood test;
- examination of patients suffering from ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease;
- examination of people at risk of colon tumors.
These patients include relatives in whose families there have been cases of cancer of the intestine. Also in this category are people who in the past were treated for cancer.
It must be emphasized that screening colonoscopy can be shown to all people who are older than forty-five years. Starting from the indicated age, it is recommended to undergo this procedure annually.
You can get instructions before a colonoscopy from your doctor.
Contraindications to the procedure
Despite the fact that colonoscopy under anesthesia is a common procedure, some people will still be better off giving this diagnosis. So, the examination is contraindicated in the following cases:
- in the presence of acute infectious diseases;
- peritonitis or suspicion of it;
- severe coagulation disorders;
- late stages of heart failure;
- the presence of stenosis of heart valves;
- allergy to anesthetics;
- neurological and psychiatric diseases;
- epilepsy;
- during pregnancy.
It should be noted that none of these conditions is a complete contraindication to the examination of colonoscopy under anesthesia. It is extremely important to discuss with the endoscopist the individual characteristics of the body so that the specialist can decide on the feasibility of diagnosis, given the possible advantages and risks of the procedure. In the case of a study, you need to pay attention to the preparatory measures. Such a measure will help ease the task of the doctor, in addition, it will positively affect the patient's condition during and after the procedure.
How to prepare for a colonoscopy?
Given that during the diagnosis the doctor will examine the colon, it is extremely important to first clean the mucous membrane. The desired effect is difficult to achieve with an enema. That is why patients are advised to prepare in advance with the help of diets and medicines sold in any pharmacy. Proper preparation for diagnostic colonoscopy includes, as a rule, the following two steps:
- Three days before the procedure is required to abandon the use of fatty meats. It is forbidden to eat fish along with dairy products, cereals, cereals, rye bread. It is also important to give up fresh vegetables and fruits. Prohibited alcoholic drinks, soda, hot spices and canned food. It is allowed to eat white bread and broths along with lean meat, eggs, pasta, rice, boiled potatoes, butter. You can drink juice or jelly. Colon cleansing for colonoscopy is important.
- On the eve of the procedure, the patient should take a laxative. As part of preparing the intestines for the examination, a solution of polyethylene glycol or drugs such as Dufalac and Fortrans are prescribed. In addition, a person will need to drink two liters of fluid on the eve of the examination. Two more liters are drunk on the day of the procedure if it is planned for the afternoon. If less than a day is allotted for preparation, the entire volume of the solution is drunk from four to eight in the evening.
Colonoscopy preparation for anesthesia is carried out directly on the day of the procedure. In this case, in the morning you should refuse food and drink. It is also important to remove contact lenses with dentures before appropriate manipulation.
Where to do a colonoscopy? The procedure can be performed at any medical institution or diagnostic center.
Under anesthesia
In the treatment room, patients are asked to remove clothing below the waist. A man is laid on his left side on a couch. In this case, the patient should pull his knees to the chest. Next, the anesthesiologist injects the drug for anesthesia into the vein, after which the patient falls asleep. According to general feelings, this, as a rule, looks like an ordinary dream, although it is very short. At this time, the doctor introduces a tip lubricated with special oil.
The endoscope is inserted through the anus into the rectum. Then the device enters the colon. Using an image that is displayed on the monitor screen, a specialist examines the mucous membrane. In the event that there is a need, the doctor can stop in order to take a picture, or remove the polyp, or take a sample. After completing the examination, the doctor removes the tube from the intestine, and the anesthetist wakes up the patient and is interested in his well-being.
Duration
The total duration of a colonoscopy procedure using sedation based on sedation ranges from fifteen to thirty minutes. Usually, patients feel good at the same time, noting only a slight weakness after waking up. Immediately after completing this procedure, a person can drink or eat food, and after half an hour he is sent home or to work.
What are the possible complications after a colonoscopy?
In the vast majority of situations, colonoscopy is performed without any complications. The patient does not experience discomfort, pain, bloating or severe weakness. But in the event that immediately or several hours after this procedure these symptoms are noted, if the patient rises in temperature and there is nausea along with bloody discharge from the rectum, then you should immediately seek medical help.
Rare, but very dangerous complications include damage to the walls of the intestines and respiratory arrest during anesthesia, rupture of the spleen and infection of the patient with hepatitis B, as well as other infectious diseases. For this reason, it is extremely important to approach with a responsibility the choice of a clinic in which it is planned to undergo a colonoscopy. Preference should be given to a medical institution, which is famous for its impeccable reputation, extensive experience in conducting this manipulation.
Colonoscopy price
The cost of this procedure with anesthesia in Russian clinics ranges from 4,000 to 20,000 rubles. Such a large price gap is associated not only with the level and quality of equipment, it depends on the service in a particular medical institution, on different approaches to the formation of the cost of the presented methodology.
As a rule, clinics that offer the lowest price for colonoscopy do not include the cost of anesthesia and the work of an anesthesiologist. Also, the diagnostic and therapeutic procedures required during the procedure may not be taken into account. For example, we are talking about taking samples of the mucosa with their further histological examination, removal of small polyps and the like. The total cost of this diagnostic method is very impressive and unexpected for patients.
Costly consultation
In other cases, the attractive cost of a colonoscopy under anesthesia can be combined with an expensive consultation of gastroenterologists, without which the passage of this procedure according to the rules of the clinic is considered impossible. Therefore, patients should clarify all the conditions for passing a colonoscopy in advance, do not be shy to ask additional questions. We should not forget that saving on diagnostics is not worth it, because health directly depends on the quality of the specialist’s work and the general standards of medical care.
Nevertheless, what is better - a colonoscopy under or without anesthesia should be decided by the doctor.