Endoscopy

Anyone ever endured an upper endoscopy?? What should I expect?

I have a feeling its going to suck big time, but I have no choice.

Thanks, J

I had a colonscopy followed by an upper endoscopy. They swore they used different scopes. You will be sedated, so don't sweat it.

Slippery wrote: Anyone ever endured an upper endoscopy?? What should I expect? I have a feeling its going to suck big time, but I have no choice. Thanks, J

I had one about a year ago.. Piece of cake. They put you out and a little while later you wake up and it's like nothing happened.

Unconsciousness/twighlight la la land and feeling like a sore throat afterwards (might last a few days). I hope there is nothing of interest to see there.

Slippery wrote: What should I expect?

Is this a trick question? They are going to shove something up your arse.

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote:

Slippery wrote: What should I expect?

Is this a trick question? They are going to shove something up your arse.

No. Only in a colonoscopy will that happen. Plus you won't even remember it unless they take some polyps. BTDT.

Through the nose/mouth, give ya some versed and you won't even remember your name even though you are wide awake.

spitfirebill wrote: I had a colonscopy followed by an upper endoscopy. They swore they used different scopes. You will be sedated, so don't sweat it.

I had both one morning this past April - yeah, sleepy time for me.

The cleansing the night before was the worst part . Be sure to have a full can or "air deodorizer spray" handy .

I had an upper endoscopy many years ago, and was awake throughout. First, they gave me a semi-happy pill. I entertained myself trying to get my heartrate way, way down. After a while, they sprayed the back of my throat witch carb cleaner, and had me deepthroat a garden hose with a camera in it. They made sure I could see the screen. Not fun, but not a challenge to endure, either.

Being slippery should help.

Seriously, good luck.

I had an endoscopy in April. I was sedated and remember absolutely nothing. Apparently in the recover room I was there with my family member (to drive me home), and I was alert, asking intelligent questions, and I don't remember any of it. Haha. I have heard some people complain of little things like sore areas in the mouth or throat, depending where they put the tubes in and if it rests on something (my lip felt a little fat, so I wonder if it was pinched slightly on one of my teeth while I was out.
But otherwise, no problems with it at all. I get carsick, and when I asked them about any nausea related to being put out, they gave me something extra so that I wouldn't nauseous from the anesthesia. I was fine when I woke up, but I have heard that some people can get nausea from anesthesia.

While you are in lala land, you will ask the same question repeatedly. I always wanted to know what time it was. My wife wanted to know if the Dr had been by.

I did not have a sore throat.

Thanks for the replies guys. GPS, its an upper endoscopy the doctor did not mention a lower one yet.

I am scheduled for next week's Saturday, no one told me of any special diet prior to this. I might need to call them Monday and check with them.

J

I work for a company that does thousands of these things a year. I’m just a supply chain guy, so I’m usually telling the centers the stuff they need to do or not do (within clinical parameters) to save $$. We’ve been looking at these lately, so here’s more detail than you ever wanted.

It’s pretty much covered here already. You’ll get some Versed (generic name Midazolam) to relax you, also because it has a hypnotic/amnesiac effect. It’s in the Valium family, if you are familiar there. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0000482/

Once you’re calm and ready to go, they’ll put a bite block in your mouth to keep you from inadvertently chomping down on the endoscope, then they thread the scope in. It’s a small plastic-coated tube, only about half the diameter of a dime, with a light and camera on the end. They’ll look around, see what they want to see, then make notes/take pictures and remove the scope, then off you go to recovery. Total procedure time is very short- typical OR minutes that we see as averages are 15-25.

Note: A lot of people say they don’t remember talking to the doctor, post-exam- it’s because you can seem totally alert and the Versed is still blocking your memory. Take notes or have your spouse or whoever is driving you home ask the questions you want answers to right away, or at least be there to make sure someone remembers.

Good luck- hope you come back with a clean report. If I may pry, what are they looking for?

You won't need any special purging stuff. Maybe just dont eat before you go. Purging is for lower end work.

I just had this done. All the way into the upper intestine and then into the bile duct all the wat to the liver. Iwas unconcious and had to be intubated also. Nothing to eat from the night before and a sore throat afterwards. In my case they put a stent in to relieve a blockage in the liver duct. For me the process is just starting, I hope you have better results.

My dad had one two years ago..........found a monster sized tumor in his stomach right where the esophagus comes in............they had to pull his stomach out set it on the table, remove the tumor, staple his stomach back together, then put him back together.

Just sayin'

i think it might be time to lighten the mood with an old ( and pretty lame) joke:

What is the difference between a gastroscope and a colonoscope?

Taste...

As for the procedure, I haven't had it done. I work in the medical industry, and know that the physician makes a big difference in the post-procedure discomfort. When the procedure is done by a good physician the discomfort should be minimal.

My father had a colonoscopy.

I wanted them to video it, then I'd put it in with my DVD's just to scare the kids.

Label it "Journey to the Center of My Dad."

Hey guys, thanks again for the insight. I just had it done this morning at 7am and left the facility at 9am, my wife had to drive home as I was still loopy.

They found nothing but took a few biopsies, but the doctor said he did not see anything abnormal. Will find out if there is anything wrong in a week.

The reason why I had this done is because lately I been having some acid reflux and whatnot.

J

What's next - a tasty (chalky) cup of barium? Yum!

Good luck, i had one done for reflux problems and came back clean as well. Doctor suggested cutting down on caffeine, artificial sweeteners, milk or protein supplements, eat more fiber, wear looser pants, get some exercise that keeps you upright (walking or biking). I can't do without the caffeine though, no energy to exercise and then my issues get worse :p Caffeine supposedly relaxes your lower esophageal sphincter and can make it harder for your stomach to keep stuff from creeping upward. I'm better but not completely back to normal yet. Acid reducers seemed to make things worse because food sat in my stomach longer in my case.

Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote:

Slippery wrote: What should I expect?

Is this a trick question? They are going to shove something up your arse.

Haaahaaahaa!

I have had the lower end done more times than I care to admit (the joys of having crohnes disease) and other than some nice 8x10 glossies of my insides.. was kind of a non-event each time

About the closest thing I've had to a similar experience is the city putting a camera down my sewer... they let me look

I think it would be great someday if technology takes us to the point that we can monitor lots of these things ourselves (for cheap of course). Kind of like how our cars have all sorts of gauges and monitoring capability with instant feedback (in this age of instant information). Just think how many problems might be preventable if you could somehow scope yourself safely and painlessly, instantly view levels of nutrients or chemicals in your body, etc... Scenario: something feels funny in your stomach, so you use some futuristic equipment to take a look right when it happens, instead of getting -for example- an endoscopy scheduled for 6 weeks later, perhaps when you aren't having symptoms and can't demonstrate what's going on inside. Think of how many things could be caught maybe before they were serious, and how much we could learn about how the body works, and what it means when you have X pain in Y area when you do Z movement or eat something in particular. Ahhhh, where is the time machine when you need it. Still waiting for those hoverboards by the way......