Planning Colonoscopy Procedures? Know About Risks Involved
"What if you had to worry about giving your wife AIDS?" asked Wayne Craig, a 52-year-old U.S. Navy veteran who lives near Murfreesboro, Tennessee. He is among the more than 10,000 veterans who were told they may need hepatitis treatment following their routine colonoscopy, which they received five years ago. So far, 53 individuals have found that they are now worse off than they were before. The veterans received letters telling them of improper hospital procedures from faulty staff training, which may have put them at risk of having hepatitis C, hepatitis B or HIV. While this represents just one class action lawsuit, it underscores the potential risks of colonoscopy screenings.
Most side effects of colonoscopy procedures are mild. Prior to the procedure, colonoscopy prep must be done by taking medication that flushes the system out. Individuals will need to take off work and remain close to the restroom the preceding day. Some people experience nausea, itchiness and lightheadedness from the sedative. Following the 20-minute procedure, individuals will need to stay at the clinic or 30 to 50 minutes of on-site recovery. Cramping, abdominal pain and vomiting occasionally occur, but the majority of patients report no discomfort at all.
In a 2005-2006 study, 110 patients in Chapel Hill, North Carolina were asked about the side effects from their colonoscopy procedures. Of the 110, 17% of the patients reported side effects from their screening colonoscopy process, which included abdominal pain, cramping, vomiting, lightheadedness, sharp pains in the right hip and fatigue. On average, people spent 21 hours prepping for the procedure, which involved 16.5 hours flushing their system, 0.8 hours traveling, 1.4 hours in the waiting room, 12 minutes undergoing sedation, 20 minutes for their colonoscopy procedure and 47 minutes of on-site recovery.
In a 2006 study by the Northern California Kaiser Permanente health system, there are certain complications of colonoscopy procedures that are "not at all uncommon." The overall incidence for complications was 5 in 1,000. Among the 5,235 procedures that did not involve biopsies, complications were 0.8/1,000 and the incidence of perforations was 0.6/1,000. However, of the 11,083 colonoscopy procedures that involved removal of colon polyps and tissue, the risk of complications jumped to 7/1,000. The incidence of bleeding was 4.8/1,000 patients and the risk of perforation was 1.1 per 1,000 patients.
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