Colonoscopy-Related Bleeding and Perforation

Data on perforation rates in clinical practice are limited because most reports of such complications come from individual centers. Now, researchers in Canada have conducted a population-based study to determine the rates of — and risk factors for — colonoscopy-related bleeding and perforation. Using physician claims databases, they identified all individuals aged 50 to 75 who underwent outpatient colonoscopy in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, or Nova Scotia between April 1, 2002, and March 31, 2003 (n=97,091). Then, they used administrative data to identify people who were admitted to the hospital with colonoscopy-related bleeding or perforation within 30 days after the procedure.

Pooled rates of bleeding and perforation were 1.64 per 1…