Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2019 Apr;10(2):194-197.
doi: 10.1136/flgastro-2018-101143. Epub 2018 Dec 22.

My approach to water-assisted colonoscopy

Keith Siau  1   2 , Iosif Beintaris  3
Affiliations

My approach to water-assisted colonoscopy

Keith Siau et al. Frontline Gastroenterol. 2019 Apr.

Abstract

The goal of diagnostic colonoscopy is to achieve procedural completion while maximising effectiveness, patient acceptance and safety. In recent years, international interest in water-assisted colonoscopy (WAC) has been steadily gathering pace. A plethora of high-quality randomised controlled trials and meta-analyses now offer incontrovertible evidence into the benefits of WAC, both for the endoscopist and the patient. Despite this, uptake of WAC within the UK has been limited, with the lack of educational resources representing a significant barrier. This practical step-by-step guide is aimed at both existing practitioners and trainees, with a view to promoting familiarity with WAC and potentially for incorporation into daily practice which may ultimately have a positive effect on quality of colonoscopy and patient experience.

Keywords: colonoscopy; technique; water exchange; water immersion.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests: KS and IB have been commissioned by Springer to write a textbook on water-assisted colonoscopy. IB is a co-investigator for the UK Water Assisted Sigmoidoscopy (WASh) trial.

References

    1. Fuccio L, Frazzoni L, Hassan C, et al. . Water exchange colonoscopy increases adenoma detection rate: a systematic review with network meta-analysis of randomized controlled studies. Gastrointest Endosc 2018;88:589–97. 10.1016/j.gie.2018.06.028 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Cadoni S, Falt P, Gallittu P, et al. . Water exchange is the least painful colonoscope insertion technique and increases completion of unsedated colonoscopy. Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol 2015;13:1972–80. 10.1016/j.cgh.2015.04.178 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Cadoni S, Hassan C, Frazzoni L, et al. . Impact of water exchange colonoscopy on endoscopy room efficiency: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Gastrointest Endosc 2018:32861–X. 10.1016/j.gie.2018.07.020 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Jia H, Pan Y, Guo X, et al. . Water exchange method significantly improves adenoma detection rate: a multicenter, randomized controlled trial. Am J Gastroenterol 2017;112:568–76. 10.1038/ajg.2016.501 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Azevedo R, Leitão C, Pinto J, et al. . Can water exchange improve patient tolerance in unsedated colonoscopy a prospective comparative study. GE Port J Gastroenterol 2018;25:166–74. 10.1159/000484093 - DOI - PMC - PubMed