What will we learn from colonoscopy?

[Nancye50]

I've been reading a little and am curious as to what a colonoscopy is really going to tell us.
My recent CT report said my colon isn't inflamed but my terminal ileum is.
What info does the biopsy provide?
How does this info affect treatment?
I'm not resisting having it done, I just want to know!

 

[Nancye50]

Just wondering if anyone could clue me in here?

 

[SCCrohnie]

When I've had colonoscopies, the doc is able to locate and remove polyps and take biopsies of any inflamed tissue to determine its root cause. While the colonoscopy is focused on your large bowel, your doc may find polyps there which should be removed.

 

[Clash]

While a ct scan can visualize thickening of the bowel from inflammation it may not pick up simmering inflammation that isn't yet severe enough to show up on ct scan.

 

[Nancye50]

Okay thank you both! I'm new to all of this and haven't been very good about accepting how ongoing this is. I wish I could just come up for air a little between all the meds and tests. Things are a wreck in there, I get it!!

 

[DustyKat]

It really is the best form of review to have imaging and scopes done as they compliment each other:

Imaging - will view the entire length of the small and bowel, whereas scopes will miss about 90%+ of the small bowel, and have the ability to pick up anomalies not only within the GI Tract but outside it as well in the organs and spaces of the abdominal cavity.

Scopes - Where the scopes can reach they are the next best thing to actually opening you up and having a look the bowel wall. The doctor can actually see what the mucosa looks like and take biopsies for further analysis. The types of things that biopsies can tell you is what disease you have, if disease is acute or chronic, the nature of the disease, what traits of the disease are present, the severity of the disease and also rule in or out other diseases such as infectious diseases (TB etc), coeliac and things like cancer.

Dusty. xxx

 

[Nancye50]

Okay thank you Dusty. I'll be very interested in the results. I bet this has been going on for a really long time.

 

[Nancye50]

They weren't able to make it in to my small intestine thanks to an ileus. He hopes they can get the necessary info from colon biopsy. Me too. It was pretty awful. I remember it, the drugs didn't do their thing. I did get the afternoon off to nap though!