Eating is something that everyone has to do in order to be healthy. The problem is, if people do not eat the right foods on a regular basis, it can severely affect their health. People who have reached middle age have probably eaten a mixture of both healthy and unhealthy food at this point.
So, in order to check the health their digestive system, it is very important that they have a preventative scan done that is known as the virtual colonoscopy. This is a procedure in which the overall health of the colon, which is also known as the small intestine, is checked.
Some people wonder why a virtual colonoscopy focuses on just the colon, and not the overall digestive system. The answer is that when a person reaches the age of fifty, he or she is far more likely to develop cancerous colon polyps without actually knowing. If diagnosed early on, these polyps can usually be treated with success. However, if they are not treated, then they can be fatal.
That is definitely reason enough to get a virtual colonoscopy. Some people get this procedure confused with its predecessor, the original colonoscopy. However, it is because of the invasiveness of the original colonoscopy that the virtual procedure came about in the first place!
The original colonoscopy was done in a hospital, and in some cases the patient had to stay overnight afterwards. The procedure itself involved the patient being lightly sedated while a long tube, which was attached to a medical video camera, was inserted up the rectum and through the entire colon. Because of this, elderly people who were considered to be especially delicate sometimes ended up having perforations.
However, the virtual colonoscopy is minimally invasive. The only thing that both procedures have in common is the way that the patient needs to prepare to clean out the colon. A couple of days prior to the procedure, the patient will have to eat a strict diet as indicated by their doctor. The night before the procedure, the patient will need to have a special drink that will completely clear out the colon of any remaining food particles.
When it comes to the virtual colonoscopy, the patient will be able to wear his or her own clothing during the procedure, provided that it is loose fitting and metal free. The patient will also need to pay special attention to not wearing any accessories (such as hearing aids or glasses) that might contain metal in them. The reason for this is that metal will impair the technology that the scan uses. In the event that the patient does not have any clothing that is without metal, then he or she will be given a medical robe to wear.
What basically happens is that a small plastic tube (which is connected to the machine itself) is inserted only about two inches into the rectum. In order to get rid of any tissue folds that might be present in the colon, some air will be blown through the tube. In total the procedure will take about fifteen minutes.
