Colonoscopy is a procedure that lets your doctor look inside your entire large intestine. It uses an instrument called a colonoscope, or scope for short. Scopes have a tiny camera attached to a long, thin tube. The procedure lets your doctor see things such as inflamed tissue, abnormal growths, and ulcers.
Your doctor may recommend a colonoscopy for a number of reasons:
- To look for early signs of cancer in the colon and rectum
- To look for causes of unexplained changes in bowel habits
- To evaluate symptoms like abdominal pain, rectal bleeding, and weight loss
Your doctor can also remove polyps from your colon during a colonoscopy.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases
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Colonoscopy
(National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases) - http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/colonoscopy/
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Colonoscopy
(Patient Education Institute) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/colonoscopy/htm/index.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spanish/tutorials/colonoscopyspanish/htm/index.htm
- Colonoscopy(Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) - http://www.mayoclinic.com/print/colonoscopy/CO00009/METHOD=print
- Preparing for a Colonoscopy(American Gastroenterological Association) - http://www.gastro.org/wmspage.cfm?parm1=858
- Understanding Colonoscopy(American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy) - http://www.asge.org/PatientInfoIndex.aspx?id=382
- Colon Screenings Don't Follow Guidelines, Study Suggests(04/06/2009, HealthDay) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_82579.html
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CT Colonography (Virtual Colonoscopy)(American College of Radiology, Radiological Society of North America) - http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/info.cfm?pg=ct_colo
Also available in Spanish http://www.radiologyinfo.org/sp/info.cfm?pg=ct_colo
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Flexible Sigmoidoscopy(National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases) - http://digestive.niddk.nih.gov/ddiseases/pubs/sigmoidoscopy/
- Frequently Asked Questions about Colonoscopy and Sigmoidoscopy(American Cancer Society) - http://www.cancer.org/docroot/CRI/content/CRI_2_6x_Frequent_Questions_About_Colonoscopy_and_Sigmoidoscopy.asp
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Sigmoidoscopy(Patient Education Institute) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/sigmoidoscopy/htm/index.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spanish/tutorials/sigmoidoscopyspanish/htm/index.htm
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Virtual Colonoscopy(National Cancer Institute) - http://imaging.cancer.gov/imaginginformation/cancerimaging/page9
- Virtual Colonoscopy(American College of Radiology) - http://www.radiologyinfo.org/en/photocat/photos_more_pc.cfm?pg=ct_colo
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Colonoscopy(Patient Education Institute) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/colonoscopy/htm/index.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spanish/tutorials/colonoscopyspanish/htm/index.htm
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Sigmoidoscopy(Patient Education Institute) - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/tutorials/sigmoidoscopy/htm/index.htm
Also available in Spanish http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/spanish/tutorials/sigmoidoscopyspanish/htm/index.htm
- ClinicalTrials.gov: Sigmoidoscopy(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/intervention=%22Sigmoidoscopy%22
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ClinicalTrials.gov: Colonoscopy(National Institutes of Health) - http://clinicaltrials.gov/search/open/intervention=colonoscopy
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Effectiveness of Colonoscopy to Prevent Death from Colorectal Cancer(American College of Physicians) - Links to PDF - http://www.annals.org/cgi/reprint/150/1/I-28.pdf
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Virtual Colonoscopy Identifies Large Polyps(National Cancer Institute) - http://www.cancer.gov/ncicancerbulletin/NCI_Cancer_Bulletin_092308/page2
References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)
- Article: Using quality improvement techniques to increase colon cancer screening. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19375547&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: Randomized clinical trial of Entonox versus midazolam-fentanyl sedation for colonoscopy. - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19283736&tool=MedlinePlus
- Article: By the way, doctor. How often should a healthy 55-year-old... - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&dopt=AbstractPlus&list_uids=19244664&tool=MedlinePlus
- Colonoscopy -- see more articles - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?cmd=search&db=pubmed&term=colonoscopy[majr]+AND+english[la]+AND+humans[mh]+AND+(jsubsetk[text]+OR+patient+education+handout[pt]+OR+jsubsetaim[text]+OR+jsubsetn[text])+NOT+(case+reports[pt]+OR+editorial[pt]+OR+letter[pt])&cmd_current=Limits&pmfilter_EDatLimit=last+1+Year&tool=MedlinePlus
- American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy: Find a Doctor(American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy) - http://www.asge.org/Apps/FindADoctor/search.aspx
- American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy - http://www.asge.org/
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National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases - http://www.niddk.nih.gov/
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Colonoscopy for Kids(North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition) - Links to PDF - http://www.naspghan.org/user-assets/Documents/pdf/diseaseInfo/ColonForKids-E.pdf
Also available in Spanish http://www.naspghan.org/user-assets/Documents/pdf/diseaseInfo/Colonoscopy-S.pdf
- Colonic Diseases - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/colonicdiseases.html
- Colorectal Cancer - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/colorectalcancer.html
- Diagnostic Tests - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/diagnostictests.html
- Digestive System - http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/digestivesystem.html
The primary NIH organization for research on Colonoscopy is the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases - http://www.niddk.nih.gov/