Colonoscopy & Endoscopy

Your doctor will give you instructions about what to do before a colonoscopy. He or she will tell you what foods you can and cannot eat. He or she will also tell you if you need to stop taking any of your usual medicines beforehand. Make sure to read the instructions as soon as you get them. You might have to stop some medicines up to a week before the test. 

The colon needs to be cleaned out before a colonoscopy. Your doctor will give you a special drink that causes watery diarrhea. It is important to drink all of it to make sure your colon is clean. If your colon is clean your doctor will get a better look at the inside lining of the colon. A clean colon also makes the test easier to do and more comfortable. Let your doctor know if you have trouble getting ready for your colonoscopy.

Your doctor will give you medicine to make you feel relaxed. Then he or she will put a thin tube with a camera and light on the end into your anus and up into the rectum and colon. Your doctor will look at the inside lining of the whole colon. 

During the procedure, your doctor might do a test called a biopsy. During a biopsy, a doctor takes a small piece of tissue from the colon. Then he or she looks at the tissue under a microscope to see if it has cancer. Your doctor might also remove growths that he or she sees in the colon. You will not feel it if the doctor takes a biopsy or removes a growth.

Your doctor will give you instructions about what to do after a colonoscopy. Most people can eat as usual. But most doctors recommend that people do not drive or go to work for the rest of the day. Your doctor will tell you when to start taking any medicines you had to stop before the test.

Call your doctor or nurse immediately if you have any of the following problems after your colonoscopy:

• Belly pain that is much worse than gas pain or cramps
• A bloated and hard belly 
• Vomiting
• Fever
• A lot of bleeding from your anus 

Your doctor will give you instructions about what to do before an endoscopy. He or she will tell you if you need to stop eating or drinking, or stop taking any of your usual medicines beforehand. Make sure to read the instructions as soon as you get them. You might have to stop some medicines up to a week before the test. Let your doctor know if you have trouble getting ready for your upper endoscopy. 

You will have an IV (needle) put in your arm or hand. Your doctor will give you medicines through the IV to make you feel relaxed. He or she might give you a mouth spray or gargle to numb your mouth. You will also get a plastic mouth guard to protect your teeth. 

Then your doctor will put a thin tube with a camera and light on the end into your mouth and down into your esophagus, stomach, and duodenum. He or she will look for irritation, bleeding, ulcers, or growths.

During an endoscopy, your doctor might also:

Do a test called a biopsy—During a biopsy, a doctor takes a small piece of tissue from the lining of the digestive tract. (You will not feel this.) Then he or she looks at the tissue under a microscope. 
Treat problems that he or she sees—For example, a doctor can stop bleeding or sometimes remove a growth. He or she can also widen any narrow areas of the esophagus. Narrow areas of the esophagus can cause trouble swallowing.

After an upper endoscopy, you will be watched for 1 to 2 hours until the medicines wear off. Most doctors recommend that people not drive or go to work right after an upper endoscopy. Most can drive and go back to work the next day.

The most common side effect is feeling bloated. Some people have nausea because of the medicines used before the procedure. If this happens to you, your doctor can give you medicine to make the nausea better. Most people can eat as usual after the procedure.

Other side effects are not as common, but can occur. These can include:

• Food from the stomach getting into the lungs
• Bleeding, for example, after a growth is removed
• Getting a tear in the digestive tract lining
• Having redness or swelling of the skin around the IV

Call your doctor or nurse immediately if you have any of the following problems after your upper endoscopy:

• Belly pain that is much worse than gas pain or cramps
• A bloated and hard belly 
• Vomiting
• Fever
• Trouble swallowing or severe throat pain
• Black bowel movements
• A “crunching” feeling under the skin in the neck