You don't need to fast before a colonoscopy

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March 24, 2024 Check out STAT+

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By Pat Skerrett First Opinion Editor

Pat Skerrett here, filling in for Torie Bosch during her maternity leave. Returning to STAT and First Opinion for a while has been an unexpected pleasure, though when my stint here has ended I will happily re-embrace retirement! An essay this week on colonoscopy, the preventive procedure everyone loves to hate, got people talking. Gastroenterologist Benjamin Lebwohl makes the argument that sticking to a clear-liquids-only diet for much of the day before a colonoscopy, or even for a few days before, just isn't needed. For the best chance at a useful colonoscopy, there are certain foods you can eat, and others to avoid, he writes. The toughest part of the prep, though, the unpleasant process of drinking a purgative, is still needed. Research published in the New England Journal of Medicine earlier this month holds out the promise of a blood test for colorectal cancer which might be good for detecting the disease, but it can't nip potentially cancerous polyps in the bud, as a colonoscopy can do. First Opinion authors also took on why medical devices makers might take a page from Uber's playbook, offering nurses sabbaticals, and more. You can read them all here.If you have an idea for First Opinion, or a full-fledged essay, please send it to me at patrick.skerrett@statnews.com.

Adobe The evidence is clear: A liquid-only diet before a colonoscopy is unnecessary Patients who eat a "low-residue diet" before a colonoscopy get just as good results — and are less likely to cancel their procedures. By Benjamin Lebwohl What the public might learn from Kate Middleton, the latest 'famous patient' Revelations of illness by celebrities like Kate Middleton, the Princess of Wales, can help inform and educate the public. By Barron H. Lerner Sabbaticals for nurses could help fight worker shortages and burnout If professors get sabbaticals to refresh and rejuvenate to sustain their academic productivity, why not frontline health care workers? By Diana J. Mason SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images The influential adverse childhood experiences questionnaire should ask about gun violence Gun violence exposure should be part of the ACE questionnaire because it has unique implications for people's health and well-being. By Sydney Durrah STAT+ | Medical devices makers are trying to take a page from Uber's playbook Regulators and payers should be on the lookout for Uber-like behavior — including aggressive marketing strategies — on the part of device makers. By Kyle H. Sheetz and Robert M. Wachter

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