During the colonoscopy, the patient should lie on the left side with the hips and knees flexed, and the doctor may change the appropriate position as needed during the examination.
The initial position during colonoscopy is left lateral, with the splenic flexure in the right lateral position and the hepatic flexure in the left lateral position or head-down hip-height position. The patient may change positions during the examination, and the purpose of changing positions is to utilize the weight of the patient’s own abdomen or the pressure of the internal organs to make observation and access to the scope easier.
The smoothness or otherwise of the access is correlated with the patient’s intestinal anatomy and the degree of cooperation. An important factor leading to unsmooth colonoscopy access is that the endoscope bends into a loop in the intestine, forming a bend, thus prolonging the access time and increasing the patient’s pain.
When doing colonoscopy, you need to follow the doctor’s requirements to position yourself so that the examination can be carried out smoothly.