Many people are not entirely conscious of the food that they eat. Some people might have a basic understanding of how good or how bad the nutritional value is in the food that they eat, but otherwise, it is basically whatever tastes the best. However, years of eating certain kinds of food can take their toll on the digestive system, particularly the colon.
Thus, when a person reaches the age of fifty or above, it is very important that they get a virtual colonoscopy every year or so. In order to understand how this procedure (which is an advanced form of scanning technology) works, it is important to have a basic knowledge of how the colon itself works.
When a person eats food, the food goes into the stomach, where the stomach acids break it all down. Next, it goes into the large intestine, and then finally the small intestine, which is also known as the colon. Some foods, especially ones like unprocessed meats and white breads, have a tendency to stay in the colon longer than others, and pose a danger of rotting. That, can, in turn, harm the colon.
The virtual colonoscopy is meant to check for any damage that has been done to the colon over time by poor diet choices, as well as to check for the presence of cancerous polyps. The original colonoscopy procedure was a very detailed one in that it took over an hour to complete, the patient had to be mildly sedated, and a long tube with a small medical camera attached to it was inserted all the way through the colon.
The risk for colon perforation was especially high for elderly people who were having the procedure done. Additionally, many people were trying to avoid having the procedure done at all because of the invasiveness of it. The virtual colonoscopy was thus designed as a minimally invasive alternative to this very important procedure.
A few days before the procedure, the person who is going to be having the virtual colonoscopy done will have to only eat certain foods, foods that will be able to be easily processed. Next, the night before the procedure, the patient will need to drink a certain drink that will completely clear out the colon of any remaining food particles.
On the day of the procedure, the patient should arrive to the location wearing metal free clothing that they also consider to be comfortable. If the patient, for some reason, has no metal free clothing, then the patient will be given a medical robe to wear, because any metal material can significantly affect the accuracy of the scan. The patient will then be made comfortable on an examining table.
Next, a small plastic tube will be inserted about two inches into the rectum, and air will gently blow through the tube so that any folds are eliminated. The scanner will then activate, during which time the patient must stay as still as possible. It will take, on average, about fifteen minutes for the scan to be completed.
