Factors associated with incomplete colonoscopy at a Japanese academic hospital

Aim: To evaluate significant risk factors for incomplete colonoscopy at a Japanese academic hospital.

Methods: A total of 11812 consecutive Japanese people were identified who underwent a colonoscopy at an academic hospital. A multiple logistic regression model was used to evaluate retrospectively the significant risk factors for incomplete colonoscopy.

Results: The cecal intubation rate was 95.0%. By univariate analysis, age, female sex, poor bowel cleansing, and a history of abdominal or pelvic surgery were significant risk factors for incomplete colonoscopy (P < 0.001). Moreover, age- and sex-adjusted analysis showed that significant risk factors for incomplete colonoscopy were female sex (OR = 1.38, 95%CI: 1.17-1.64, P = 0.0002), age ≥ 60 years old (OR = 1.44, 95%CI: 1.22-1.71, P < 0.0001), a history of prior abdominal or pelvic surgery (OR = 1.55, 95%CI: 1.28-1.86, P < 0.0001), poor bowel cleansing (OR = 4.64, 95%CI: 3.69-5.84, P < 0.0001), and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) (OR = 1.48, 95%CI: 1.13-1.95, P = 0.0048). In Japanese men, by age-adjusted analysis, IBD (OR = 1.69, 95%CI: 1.18-2.43, P = 0.005) was an independent risk factor for incomplete colonoscopy.

Conclusion: Several characteristics in the Japanese population were identified that could predict technical difficulty with colonoscopy.