Colonoscopy and warfarin

[Phil]

Hi All,

I'm having a colonoscopy in two weeks time. The guy performing this contacted me to say hold-off taking warfarin on the night before the procedure and recommence taking it the night of the procedure. This means I will miss one dose. I don't feel particularly concerned about this, but thought I should see what others have done. My levels are really stable (2.3-2.6).

Any comments appreciated.

Cheers.



Phil.

 

[RobThatsMe]

When I had mine done, I was switched off Coumadin, and had to take Heparin for several days prior, and several days after.
The concern was the possibility of an accidental scrape by the scope while working it's way along, or if they did find a polyp that
had to be snipped off and removed.

I have found comments that run the full range on this topic, from not changing your dose, to coming completely off it.
For me personally, I figured that a minor inconvenience for me having to inject Heparin for several days, kept me protected, and also allowed the doctor to do what ever he needed to do during the exam.

Rob

 

[tom in MO]

Per my colorectal surgeon two years ago, there is no need to stop warfarin if all that is being done is a colonscopy. I verified this in the most current literature for valve replacement patient care. However, if there needs to be a biopsy or some polyp removal then you need to bring down your INR. I am not sure if this is by stopping warfarin or by bridging.