Adenoma Recurrence and Guidelines for Surveillance After Polypectomy

Guidelines for repeat colonoscopy suggest a 3-year follow-up interval after detection of any advanced adenoma or three or more nonadvanced adenomas and a 5- to 10-year interval after detection of one or two nonadvanced adenomas (Gastroenterology 2006; 130:1872). To determine the adenoma recurrence rate, researchers analyzed prospective data from 2079 adults with at least one baseline colon adenoma who underwent repeat colonoscopy 4 years later.

At 4-year follow-up colonoscopy, 7% of participants had advanced adenomas (high-grade dysplasia, villous histology, or polyps ≥1 cm), 33% had nonadvanced adenomas, and 60% had no adenomas. Among patients considered to be “high risk” according to baseline findings (i.e., having any advanced adenoma or …