The other screening tests include flexible sigmoidoscopy, double-contrast barium enema, computed tomographic (CT) colongraphy (virtual colonoscopy), guaiac-based fecal occult blood test (gFOBT), fecal immunochemical test (FIT), and multitarget stool DNA screening test (Cologuard).Subsequent rescreenings are then scheduled based on the initial results found, with a five- or ten-year recall being common for colonoscopies that produce normal results. People with a family history of colon cancer are often first screened during their teenage years. Among people who have had an initial colonoscopy that found no polyps, the risk of developing colorectal cancer within five years is extremely low. Therefore, there is no need for those people to have another colonoscopy sooner than five years after the first screening.Some medical societies in the US recommend a screening colonoscopy every 10 years beginning at age 50 for adults without increased risk for colorectal cancer.
Virtual colonoscopy does not allow therapeutic maneuvers such as polyp and tumour removal or biopsy, nor visualization of lesions smaller than five millimeters; if a growth or polyp is detected using CT colonography, it would require removal during a standard colonoscopy. Surgeons have used the term pouchoscopy to refer to a colonoscopy of the ileo-anal pouch. Medical uses
Conditions that call for colonoscopies include gastrointestinal hemorrhage, unexplained changes in bowel habit and suspicion of malignancy. Colonoscopies are often used to diagnose colon polyp and colon cancer, but are also frequently used to diagnose inflammatory bowel disease. In older patients (sometimes even younger ones) an unexplained drop in hematocrit (one sign of anemia) is an indication that calls for a colonoscopy, usually along with an esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD), even if no obvious blood has been seen in the stool (feces).Fecal occult blood is a quick test which can be done to test for microscopic traces of blood in the stool. A positive test is almost always an indication to do a colonoscopy. In most cases the positive result is just due to hemorrhoids; however, it can also be due to diverticulosis, inflammatory bowel disease (Crohns disease, ulcerative colitis), colon cancer, or polyps. Colonic polypectomy has become a routine part of colonoscopy, allowing quick and simple removal of polyps during the procedure, without invasive surgery. Colon cancer screening
Colonoscopy is one of the colorectal cancer screening tests available to people in the US who are 45 years of age and older.