Abstract
Purposes:
Clinical value of screening colonoscopy (SC) has been widely accepted; however, its clinical utility remains controversial in patients who undergo laparoscopic cholecystectomy (LC). The aim of this study is to confirm the clinical value of medical care costs for SC before LC.
Methods
Of the 509 patients who underwent LC, 335 patients underwent preoperative SC, and the remaining 174 patients did not. The electronic medical records were retrospectively reviewed, and the technical fees of SC and endoscopic and/or surgical resection for colorectal neoplasia (CRN) were analyzed.
Results
In the 335 study patients, CRNs were identified in 179 patients (53.4%), including eight (2.4%) with adenocarcinomas, and 132 (39.4%) with tubular adenomas. The rate of advanced adenoma and adenocarcinoma were 13.1%. The total technical fees of SC and/or treatment of CRNs among the 335 study patients and surgical procedures among the four patients who were diagnosed with resectable colorectal carcinoma after LC were 13,125,700 JPY and 4,964,300 JPY, respectively. Regarding the technical fee per person, the former group (approximately 39,180 JPY) had much economic advantage compared to the latter group (1,241,075 JPY).
Conclusions
Scheduling LC is recognized as an important chance to undergo SC.