Acolonoscopyis a procedure thats used to look inside the colon (large intestine).
It is a necessary and safe procedure.
In rare cases, a bacterial infection is possible after having a colonoscopy.
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This article will discuss the symptoms of bacterial infection after a colonoscopy.
While its not likely to happen, its good to know what the signs and symptoms are.
The number of people who had an infection within 30 days after the procedure was noted.
The overall rate was found to be 0.37%.
Removing a polyp is important to prevent colon cancer, but may cause some minor bleeding.
The types of infection that occurred were also varied.
It shows up when an infection in the body gets into the bloodstream.
Its important to know the symptoms of sepsis because it needs to get treatment right away.
A certain amount of abdominal discomfort may be part of the recovery process.
Some people will have intestinal gas and this may be uncomfortable until it can be passed.
When a polyp has been removed, there could be bleeding from the rectum.
Polyps are the precursor to colon and rectal cancer.
However, these symptoms shouldnt be severe, and they should go away within a day or so.
If symptoms go on for too long or are really troublesome, its time to contact a healthcare provider.
These risks include:
Are Colonoscopies Safe?
Complications are uncommon to rare with colonoscopy.
The usefulness of the test in preventing and screening for colon and rectal cancer outweighs the risks.
There are some people for whom the benefits may not outweigh the risks.
Reducing Risk
There are some risk factors for having an infection after a colonoscopy that are fixed.
However, its good to know if your risk might be higher because of these things.
If you have concerns, ask questions.
you might ask about safety precautions, and tell yourgastroenterologistor other healthcare provider your concerns about avoiding infection.
Questions to Ask
Endoscopy centers will have a staff member who cleans scopes.
Scopes are usually tagged in some way as being clean after they’ve been processed.
Its recommended that even people of average risk of colon and rectal cancer get a screening scope.
The risks of any complications are low.
While infections and other complications of a colonoscopy are not common, they occur.
Talk to your gastroenterologist about the procedure and any potential risk factors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Many of the studies on complications after colonoscopy track patients for 30 days.
Some potential complications may start soon after the procedure but be longer-lasting, such as aspiration pneumonia.
Abdominal pain that continues for two weeks after a colonoscopy is a reason to talk to a healthcare provider.
Some people may have gas, bloating, or discomfort in the first few days after a colonoscopy.
Sepsis is an infection in the blood.
If a person develops an infection after having a colonoscopy, sepsis could result.
However, this is a rare occurrence.
Bacteria in the blood could lead to sepsis, but this doesnt always happen.
Therefore, the rate of sepsis would be even lower than that of people with bacteria in their blood.
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