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Virtual Colonoscopy

Alternative Names: Colonoscopy - virtual What the risks are: Radiation exposure Nausea, vomiting, bloating, or rectal irritation caused prep medications Special considerations: Differences between virtual and conventional colonoscopy include: Virtual colonoscopy uses no sedation, and patients are usually able to resume normal activities immediately after the test. Conventional colonoscopy involves sedation, and usually the loss of a work day. If a polyp is found with virtual colonoscopy, the patient must have a conventional colonoscopy to remove the abnormality. Conventional colonoscopy allows for the immediate removal of polyps . Both procedures can spot polyps that have reached a large, worrisome size. However, virtual colonoscopy is not as detailed as a conventional colonoscopy, and may miss polyps smaller than 10 millimeters in diameter or flat lesions. Virtual colonoscopy is not currently recommended as a screening tool for the early detection of colon cancer. Routine screening for colon cancer involves conventional colonoscopy, as well as other tests. References: Virtual Colonoscopy, The Medical Letter, February 14, 2005; 1202:15 Text Continues Below Van Dam, J. et al. CT Colonography. Gastroenterology. 2004; 127: 970-984  Lieberman, D. Colonoscopy: Good as Gold? Ann Intern Med. 2004; 141: 401-403  Pickhardt, P. et al. Location of Adenomas Missed by Optical Colonoscopy. Ann Intern Med. 2004; 141:352-359

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