Colonoscopy
hideColonoscopy is the endoscopic examination of the large colon and the distal part of the small bowel with a CCD camera or a fiber optic camera on a flexible tube passed through the anus. It may provide a visual diagnosis (e.g. ulceration, polyps) and grants the opportunity for biopsy or removal of suspected lesions.
Virtual colonoscopy, which uses 2D and 3D imagery reconstructed from computed tomography (CT) scans or from nuclear magnetic resonance (MR) scans, is also possible, as a totally non-invasive medical test, although it is not standard and still under investigation regarding its diagnostic abilities. Furthermore, virtual colonoscopy does not allow for therapeutic maneuvers such as polyp/tumor removal or biopsy nor visualization of lesions smaller than 5 millimeters. If a growth or polyp is detected using CT colonography, a standard colonoscopy would still need to be performed.
Colonoscopy can remove polyps as small as one millimeter or less. Once polyps are removed, they can be studied with the aid of a microscope to determine if they are precancerous or not.
Colonoscopy is similar to but not the same as sigmoidoscopy, the difference being related to which parts of the colon each can examine. While colonoscopy allows an examination of the entire colon (measuring four to five feet in length), sigmoidoscopy allows doctors to view only the final two feet of the colon. A sigmoidoscopy is often used as a screening procedure for a full colonoscopy, in many instances in conjunction with a fecal occult blood test (FOBT), which can detect the formation of cancerous cells throughout the colon. Other times, a sigmoidoscopy is preferred to a full colonoscopy in patients having an active flare of ulcerative colitis or Crohn's disease to avoid perforation of the colon. Additionally, surgeons have lately been using the term pouchoscopy to refer to a colonoscopy of the ileo-anal pouch.
For more information about Colonoscopy, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with colonoscopy
Colon cancer screening more effective earlier in day, study finds
Nov 03, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
The effectiveness of a screening colonoscopy may depend on the time of day it is performed. According to a new UCLA study, early-morning colonoscopies yielded more polyps per patient than later screenings, and fewer polyps ...
Residents play key role in CT colonography awareness and promoting the radiology specialty
Oct 28, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
Residents can serve a vital role in educating Congress, the medical community, and the general public regarding the efficacy of cutting-edge technologies like CT colonography (CTC) as well as the importance of radiologists' ...
High-definition colonoscopy detects more polyps
Oct 28, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
High-definition (HD) colonoscopy is much more sensitive than standard colonoscopy in finding polyps that could morph into cancer, say researchers at the Mayo Clinic campus in Florida.
Emerging imaging modalities impact diagnosis of digestive disease
Oct 26, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
Recent advances in colonoscopic technology are featured in a number of studies presented at the Annual Scientific Meeting of the American College of Gastroenterology this week. In this research some technologies fare better ...
Researchers evaluate new bowel prep approaches
Oct 26, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
While there is little doubt concerning the effectiveness of colonoscopy procedures to detect colon cancer, a new study presented at the American College of Gastroenterology's 74th Annual Scientific Meeting in San Diego places ...
Diverticulosis not associated with higher incidence of polyps
Oct 26, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
A Henry Ford Hospital study questions the need for aggressive screening for colonic polyps in patients with diverticulosis.
Study shows how to lower costs, waiting times for colonoscopies
Oct 06, 2009 |
4 / 5 (1) |
1
Colorectal cancer is a leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, leading to over 50,000 fatalities every year. But it can be prevented with early screening using a procedure called a colonoscopy. Now researchers ...
How to increase colonoscopy attendance?
Aug 26, 2009 |
4 / 5 (1) |
0
In view of low attendance rate for colonoscopy screening for colorectal cancer (CRC), it is necessary to establish effective intervention methods to increase colonoscopy compliance. Many studies have reported that subjective ...
Reinterpretation of proximal colon polyps called hyperplastic in 2001
Aug 25, 2009 |
2 / 5 (1) |
0
Serrated colorectal polyps include the subgroups hyperplastic polyps, sessile serrated polyps (also called sessile serrated adenomas), and serrated adenomas. Recent studies have found that serrated polyps share molecular ...
Colon capsule endoscopy diagnoses 64 percent of total polyps detected by conventional colonoscopy
Jul 27, 2009 |
4 / 5 (1) |
0
Capsule endoscopy for exploring the colon in a minimally invasive manner diagnoses 64% of all lesions located by means of conventional colonoscopy. According to a study published in The New England Journal of Medicine - the ...
Less invasive CT-scan based colorectal cancer screening method shows good accuracy
Jun 17, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
Computed tomographic (CT) colonography may offer patients at increased risk of colorectal cancer an alternative to colonoscopy that is less-invasive, is better-tolerated and has good diagnostic accuracy, according to a study ...
Colon cancer screening technique shows continued promise in new study
Jun 09, 2009 |
5 / 5 (3) |
0
Recent clinical trials show that a new colon cancer screening technique created by Northwestern University researchers has a high enough sensitivity that it could potentially be as or more successful than a colonoscopy in ...
Study says colorectal cancer increasing in young adults
Jun 08, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
A new study finds that in sharp contrast to the overall declining rates of colorectal cancer in the United States, incidence rates among adults younger than age 50 years are increasing. The authors theorize that these increases ...
Advance in bowel cancer test research
Jun 04, 2009 |
5 / 5 (1) |
0
(PhysOrg.com) -- Australian researchers have developed gene expression biomarkers which can accurately discriminate pre-cancerous and cancerous colorectal growths from non-cancerous controls.
Picture is cloudy over virtual colon exam
May 15, 2009 |
not rated yet |
0
The federal government's decision this week to not reimburse for high-tech colonoscopy exams may pose trouble for emerging companies that specialize in managing complex data from increasingly powerful imaging machines.
