The Usefulness of Colonoscopy as a Colon Cancer Screening Test for Asymptomatic Adults

Cho, Hyun Ho; Lee, Seok Young; Huh, Jeong Kwon; Kim, Jung Hoon; Lim, Hee Hwan; No, Hee Sun; Cho, Jang Hyun; Cho, Sung In; Kim, Duck Ryung; Park, Su Cheol; Kim, Jin; Han, Chul Ju; Kim, You Cheoul

Abstract

BACKGROUND/AIMS: This study evaluated the prevalence and location of colonic adenomatous polyps in asymptomatic adults.
METHODS
A total of 2,849 asymptomatic adults underwent colonscopic screening as a part of health evaluation from January 2003 to September 2005. Completed questionnaires as well as the colonoscopic and pathologic findings were analyzed.
RESULTS
There were 406 (14.3%) subjects with adenomatous polyps including 78 (2.7%) with advanced polyps. There was a trend toward an increased prevalence of adenomatous polyps with age. The relative risk of a proximal polyp according to the distal findings was 5.7 (95% CI 4.3 ~ 7.4) for adenoma, 4.9 (95% CI 3.0 ~ 7.7) for advanced adenoma compared with that for no adenomatous polyp. There were no index polyps at the distal colon in 30% of the 406 subjects.
CONCLUSIONS
Though distal polyps are associated with the proximal polyps, 30% of asymptomatic adults with proximal polyps are not associated with any distal index polyps. For those without any contraindication to the procedure, colonoscopy performed by experienced colonoscopists as a screening test is feasible for detecting those patients with colorectal polyps.