Tuesday, March 6, 2012

How To Prepare For A Colonoscopy

By Sandy Rutherforde


Preparing for a colonoscopy is a process that can take about seven days prior to the actual procedure. People are required to flush the colon and ready the body before the procedure is started, ensuring that clear results are obtained from the diagnostic test.

This examination is usually recommended for patients suffering from different digestive conditions and once patients reach a certain age. The invasive examination can call for in excess of a week of preparation.

What is required to get ready for a colonoscopy?

Five to seven days before the exam is due the patient needs to stop taking specific prescription drugs. This includes medicines that are being prescribed to thin the blood, and medicines that contain iron. The doctor will make use of the medical history to figure out which active medicines can be continued, and which need to be discontinued temporarily until the exam has been finished.

Two days prior to when the procedure is planned the patient will start the process of cleansing the colon. Using specific laxatives, the patient will begin the course of treatment and flush the colon. Any adverse effects which are suffered from the laxatives must be reported to the doctor and individuals are often advised to stay home as the laxatives might have the person spending more time in the bathroom than usual. This is completely normal and the laxatives ensure that the images of the colon will be very easily viewed throughout the colonoscopy.

Twenty four hours before the procedure is planned the person is required to fast and only take in liquids while finishing the final phases of the preparation that will involve additional laxatives and complete the emptying of the colon before the diagnostic exam will be carried out. It is very important to refrain from drinking anything that's red in color, as it may interfere with the test results and avoid drinking milk twenty four hours prior to the procedure.

On the day of the procedure the final preparation starts. The patient can continue to drink clear liquids up until two to four hours prior to the exam, based on the recommendations which are given by the physician.

Instructions are provided to the individual from the doctor or from the hospital in which the examination is being done. On the instructions, there are recommendations about the kinds of laxatives that can be employed to do the preparation. These types of laxatives are readily available at local pharmacies and they are under the label of phosphosoda laxatives.

This week long preparation can be quite intensive but adhering to the guidelines can make sure that clear and concise test results are going to be obtained from the examination. This examination is important to rule out disorders in the colon.




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