Follow-up Question

[Crohns69]

Hey all,

Since I am in the early stages of crohns...as far as notification is concerned....going on 6 months...does the doctors normally want you to come back in and get another colonopsy to see if there is any progression?????


Just asking now...because they did say something about a follow-up and would be contacting me around the 6 month mark..:ycool:

 

[Kev]

Well, in my case... my GI typically has me in at least once every couple of months.

Follow ups may involve further scopes... I think most GI's try to keep it down to a minimum... Essentially, once a scope conclusively shows IBD, unless there are any new developments, symptoms, or perhaps the initial scope didn't conclusively determine what form of IBD you have; then a lot of the follow-up can be done by talking over your current symptoms with your doc, and getting regular bloodwork, etc., to monitor inflammatory markers, that sort of thing. I haven't had a scope in over a year... and I'm not eager to have another in the foreseeable future. I'd do it IF my doctor said it was required, but only if so. A subsequent scope may be indicated if they wanted to know how 'virulent' your particular case of IBD is. Mine seems to spread like wildfire at times...

 

[AgB621]

After my initial colonoscopy, my doctor scheduled a follow-up for a few weeks after my course of antibiotics was complete. (It's scheduled for July.) I would ask your doctor, my guess is it doesn't hurt to get an idea if the meds they gave you are working or not. In my case, I think the follow-up is at least in part to confirm the diagnosis and to see the extent of my Crohn's when I don't have a huge infection aggravating it.

But again, I would definitely ask your doctor.

 

[mikeyarmo]

Hi Crohns69,

A colonoscopy is one of many tools used to determine the severity of IBD in a patient. Since it requires more time and cost than some of the other forms, it is not used as frequently (as say a blood test could be) to monitor your disease. This of course differs depending on the severity of the disease you have and what exactly a doctor is looking for as a colonoscopy gives a much better indication of the location and severity of the disease then practically anything else. As someone who has been disease free for several years now, my doctor usually wants me to have a colonoscopy about every 2 years, just to ensure that nothing has changed. Otherwise he does not expect anything from me to maintain my current healthy condition.