This article is more than 5 years old. Information may no longer be current.

Adverse events after colonoscopy increased with age, comorbidities in Medicare beneficiaries

Add topic to email alerts

Receive an email when new articles are posted on

Please provide your email address to receive an email when new articles are posted on .

Subscribe

Added to email alerts

You've successfully added to your alerts. You will receive an email when new content is published.

Click Here to Manage Email Alerts

You've successfully added to your alerts. You will receive an email when new content is published.

Click Here to Manage Email Alerts

Back to Healio

We were unable to process your request. Please try again later. If you continue to have this issue please contact customerservice@slackinc.com.

Back to Healio

Although elderly Medicare beneficiaries had a low overall risk for adverse events after an outpatient colonoscopy, risk for these events increased with increasing age and comorbid conditions, according to the results of a population-based study. These results further support the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommendations that colorectal screening cease after age 75.

Researchers used Medicare data to identify a group of beneficiaries who underwent colonoscopy between 2001 and 2005 (n=53,220). This group was compared with another group of beneficiaries who did not undergo colonscopy. Measurements were taken for 30-day rates of cardiac and gastrointestinal complications that were severe enough to require an emergency department visit.

About 10% of procedures were billed as screening, 33.6% as diagnostic and 56.3% as procedures involving polypectomy, the researchers wrote.

Patients who underwent a colonoscopy had significantly greater risk for a serious gastrointestinal, any gastrointestinal or cardiovascular adverse events compared with those who did not have the procedure (see table).

In addition, the risk for adverse events increased with age. Compared with patients aged 66 to 69, patients aged 80 or older had a higher risk for serious gastrointestinal events (risk per 1,000 person years: 8.8 vs. 5.0) and other gastrointestinal events (15.9 vs. 6.9).

Finally, those patients with comorbid conditions were also at a greater risk for adverse events after colonoscopy. A history of stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, atrial fibrillation or chronic heart failure increased risk for serious gastrointestinal events. The risk for any gastrointestinal event was higher in those patients who had diabetes, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and chronic heart failure.

Warren JL. Ann Intern Med. 2009;150:849-857.