Is a colonoscopy painful?

Colonoscopy is a way to understand gastrointestinal health. If you are doing a colonoscopy now, you should also understand some precautions. Generally, before doing a colonoscopy, you need to take medicine to expel feces or water in the intestines, and then have the examination.

1. Three days before the examination, stop taking iron supplements and start eating a semi-liquid or low-residue diet, such as fish, eggs, milk, soy products, porridge, noodles, bread, bananas, winter melon, potatoes, etc.

2. Take a laxative and drink plenty of water the night before the examination.

3. Eat a residue-free liquid diet or fast on the day of the examination. Clean the intestines 2 hours before the examination and rest quietly half an hour before the examination.

4. During the examination, the patient first lies on his left side, relaxes his abdomen, and bends his knees. During the examination, change body position as required by the doctor.

5. If you feel any pain during the examination, tell the doctor immediately so that the doctor can insert the endoscope safely.

6. Rest for 1-2 days after the examination. If severe abdominal pain, bloating, bloody stool, etc. occur, go to the hospital immediately.

7. If a biopsy is performed, avoid strenuous activities within 3 days after the operation.

8. Patients with severe heart disease, cardiopulmonary insufficiency, severe hypertension, acute diarrhea, severe ulcerative colitis, Crohn's disease of the colon, peritonitis, pregnancy, mental illness, multiple abdominal surgeries and obvious adhesions are prohibited from undergoing this examination.

9. In order to facilitate the insertion of the endoscope or to see the mucosal morphology of the intestinal cavity clearly, the doctor sometimes needs to inject a small amount of air into the intestinal cavity to expand or expose the intestinal cavity. At this time, the patient often feels abdominal distension and a feeling of defecation.

10 In addition, due to the tortuous curves of the large intestine, experts say that sometimes the intestinal curvature is too large, or the patient has a history of abdominal surgery or intestinal adhesions, and the patient will feel some bloating and pain when the colonoscope is passed through. It is best to take deep breaths at this time and not to be overly nervous, otherwise intestinal spasms may occur easily, which will increase the difficulty and risk of the doctor inserting the endoscope and prolong the operation time.