14 days before your procedure:
- If you are taking blood thinners, make sure the doctor overseeing your care is aware of your upcoming procedure so anyadjustments in your medication can be made. This includes: Lovenox (enoxaparin), Normiflo (ardeparin), Fragmin (dalteparin), Innohep (tinzaparin), Coumadin (warfarin), Arixtra (fondaparinux), Plavix (clopidogrel), or Ticlid (ticlopidine).
- Generally, GI procedures require you stop taking blood thinners such as Plavix or Coumadin five days before the procedure.
- However, every case is unique. Discuss your upcoming procedure with the doctor who prescribed your blood thinner medication. After your colonoscopy, talk with the doctor who performed your examination about the right time to resume your medication.
Five days before your procedure:
- If you take iron supplements, discontinue them at least five days before your colonoscopy. You may resume taking supplements after your procedure.
- If you have diabetes, consult your personal doctor about any necessary changes in your diabetes medication or insulin shots.
- Take all other regular medications you usually take on the morning of you procedure, i.e., blood pressure medication. Any medication you do not have to take in the morning, do not take until the procedure is over (example: vitamins).
- Do not eat salads, raw or leafy vegetables and raw fruit, or any products that contain Olestra (example: WOW potato chips), for three days prior to your procedure.
One Day before Your Colonoscopy:
- Buy one carton of MoviPrep (has one disposable 1-liter container, 2 pouch-A and 2 pouch-B) and one (32 ounces each) bottle of clear “ice” or yellow Gatorade. Also purchase Dulcolax (Bisacodyl 5mg); you will need 6 tablets. Dr. Frazier will provide a prescription for the MoviPrep, which can be purchased at your local pharmacy.
- Eat a clear liquid breakfast.
- Early in the morning, Fill the 2 of the 1 liter disposable containers with lukewarm tap water, and add one MoviPrep pouch-A and one pouch-B to each bottle. Shake vigorously to dissolve the powder completely, and place in the refrigerator to chill along with the Gatorade. Place the bottle of Gatorade in the refrigerator. Very cold temperature makes the MoviPrep and the Gatorade easier to drink.
- At noon, begin the clear liquid diet (i.e., no “milky” liquids or supplements, pureed or soft food, no supplements like Ensure or Boost). Do not drink alcoholic beverages. On the day of colonoscopy, stop drinking clear liquids 3 hours prior to leaving home. Examples of acceptable clear liquids include:
- Clear broth or bouillon (without noodles or other solids), any flavor.
- Coffee or tea (without milk or cream)
- Soft drinks like soda-pop, Kool–Aid, Gatorade, Tang, lemonade
- Juices without pulp: apple, cranberry, orange, grapefruit
- Gelatin like Jello (no red, blue, green or purple)
- Popsicles (no ice cream or yogurt bars)
- Avoid red, green, blue or purple colored clear liquids and Jello because brightly colored substances in your system will make the exam more difficult to read.
- At 6 p.m. take four tablets of Dulcolax (Bisacodyl) 5mg each. Start drinking the Moviprep, taking 1 glass (8oz) every 15 minutes until you finish the full 1 liter jug (4 glasses). Fifteen minutes later, drink one glass of Gatorade every 10 minutes for a total of four glasses. Keep the MoviPrep very cold to decrease nausea, and drink it rapidly, to improve the effectiveness of bowel cleansing. Immediately after, take your regular medications with water (except Plavix).
- Do not eat or drink anything else, until after your colonoscopy is finished.
On the day of the colonoscopy:
- Five hours before leaving to come to the hospital, take two 5 mg tablets of Dulcolax (bisacodyl), the other bottle of MoviPrep, taking one 8-ounce glass every 15 minutes until you finish the entire container (MoviPrep mixed with water). Fifteen minutes later, drink one 8-ounce glass of Gatorade every 10 minutes until you have finished four glasses. Keep the MoviPrep very cold to decrease nausea, and drink it fast, to improve effectiveness of bowel cleansing. Immediately afterward, take your regular medications with water.
- Do not eat nor drink anything else until after your colonoscopy is finished.
- Check in at Three Rivers Medical Center Outpatient Registration, located on the first floor of the hospital. Plan to arrive 30 minutes before your scheduled procedure, to allow time for any remaining paperwork to be completed.
- Bring a designated driver. Because you’ll receive medication that will make you unable to drive or make important decisions, if you do not bring a driver, the procedure will be cancelled.
ASSOCIATED CARE
ASSOCIATED PROVIDERS
ASSOCIATED LOCATIONS
Louisa Location
40 Professional Park Drive
Suite 108
Louisa, KY 41230
Paintsville Location
958 Broadway Street
Paintsville, KY 41240