Cecal intubation time in screening colonoscopy

The time required to intubate the cecum varies. The aim of this study was to determine whether demographic and anthropometric factors, such as body mass index (BMI), percent body fat, muscle mass, and fat mass, affect the cecal intubation time (CIT) during complete colonoscopy. A retrospective chart review of 1229 patients (aged 40–80 years) was performed. These patients underwent average-risk screening colonoscopies performed by expert gastroenterologists at Health Check-up Center, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, during a health check-up. We collected data on age, sex, BMI, percent body fat, muscle mass, fat mass, history of prior abdominal or pelvic surgery, CIT, and bowel preparation quality (Boston Bowel Preparation Scale [BBPS] score). Of the 1229 patients, 62% were men. The mean age was 55 years, and the mean BMI was 24 kg/m(2). The median CIT was 5 min. The patients were categorized into two groups according to CIT: easy colonoscopy (CIT ≤ 10 min) and difficult colonoscopy (CIT > 10 min). In univariate analysis, CIT was prolonged by the following factors: older age, poor bowel preparation, lower BMI, lower percent body fat, and less fat mass. Multivariate analysis showed that anthropometric indices including BMI, percent body fat, muscle mass, and fat mass were not significant factors for CIT. Older age (≥ 70 years) (odds ratio [OR]: 2.272, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.056–4.890, P = .036) and poor bowel preparation (BBPS score ≤ 5) (OR: 3.817, 95% CI: 1.866–7.808, P = .000) were found to be correlated with difficult colonoscopy. Our study suggests that anthropometric indices including BMI, percent body fat, muscle mass, and fat mass are not associated with significantly different CIT. Furthermore, sex and prior abdominal or pelvic surgery are not useful factors for a prolonged CIT. Older age (≥ 70 years) and poor bowel preparation (BBPS score ≤ 5) are significant variables predicting the CIT of expert gastroenterologists.