China and neighboring Korea and Japan are regions with high incidence of gastric cancer. The current situation of gastric cancer in China is that the incidence rate is high, but the early diagnosis rate is low and the survival prognosis is poor.
The incidence rate of gastric cancer remains high, and more and more people around us are suffering from gastric diseases, so “gastroscopy” has become familiar to the general public.
However, do you really know about gastroscopy?
You need to know before the examination.
If the examination is scheduled in the morning, do not eat after dinner the day before the examination.
If the examination is scheduled in the afternoon, you can eat liquid or less crumbly food for breakfast and fast for lunch. Liquid food specifically refers to: a variety of soups, lighter porridge, meat porridge and vegetable porridge are counted. Less residue diet: means avoiding foods containing more fiber such as celery in vegetables, coarse grains or foods that are too hard.
Older, frailer people can maintain energy by intravenous drip or by drinking glucose by mouth, etc.
smokers, who should stop smoking the day before the examination
Those who have movable dentures should remove them before the examination.
If you choose to have a painless gastroscopy, you should not drink 4 to 6 hours before the examination, and you should complete an anesthesia visit and evaluation before the procedure.
What you need to know after the examination.
you may feel bloating, pain and the feeling of something uncomfortable in the stomach early after the completion of the examination, and you may also burp, but don’t worry too much, usually these symptoms will be gradually relieved, rest and observe in the hospital for about half an hour after the examination before leaving.
biopsy patients to try to eat a liquid diet in the early stage and not to eat irritating food.
Endoscopic treatment (polyp removal, mass debridement, vascular ligature) may require a period of time without food after completion, and most elderly patients are currently hospitalized to follow medical advice.
To check against this, it is recommended to visit a regular hospital for gastroscopy if you have
frequent difficulty swallowing, pain in the upper abdomen, incessant burping, acid reflux, and a pronounced feeling of fullness
unexplained vomiting of blood, black stools, unexplained abdominal pain (recurrent pain and in an unclear location), combined with medical history, gastroscopy together is recommended.
Patients with diseases such as liver cirrhosis who need to be evaluated for complications such as esophagus and gastric fundus to be perfected
Patients with upper gastrointestinal tract tumors such as gastric cancer and esophageal cancer who need regular follow-up after surgery
High-risk groups for gastric cancer: patients whose immediate family members have had gastric cancer and whose previous examinations have shown high-risk factors need regular gastroscopy for timely detection of early gastric cancer.
Gastric cancer screening for healthy people: current guidelines and related studies believe that gastroscopy can increase the diagnosis of gastric cancer but does not reduce deaths caused by gastric cancer, and Japan likewise does not recommend it as a mass gastric cancer screening program; on an individual basis, it needs to be decided in combination with symptoms, economic conditions, psychological acceptance, etc.
Gastroscopy reports are usually available soon after gastroscopy, but it is important to note whether a tissue biopsy is performed or not.
Whether or not to biopsy is judged by the operating physician with clinical experience, generally take a biopsy of the suspicious tissue and conduct a tissue examination to determine the nature.
If there is no biopsy, regardless of the degree described in the report, it is a different manifestation of inflammation, and the doctor will decide whether to treat and the treatment plan, taking into account the symptoms, whether it is combined with H. pylori infection and the degree, so there is no need to worry too much.
If there is a biopsy, it is recommended to combine it with the histopathology report to determine and consult the doctor. If the histopathology report shows cancer, you should immediately go to a regular hospital to improve the examination and evaluation for further diagnosis and treatment.
If the report shows various types of gastritis, words such as “acute and chronic inflammation of the mucosa”, “chronic superficial gastritis”, “atrophic gastritis” and “intestinal hyperplasia, low to moderate atypical hyperplasia” will appear on the report form.
The first three need to be combined with symptoms, the presence or absence of combined H. pylori infection and the degree to decide the treatment plan. Most of the ordinary inflammation can be recovered, and atrophic inflammation can be controlled or partially relieved (for some elderly people, atrophic gastritis may be normal).
Intestinal hyperplasia is an additional change based on atrophic gastritis and requires attention, but as with low to moderate atypical hyperplasia, there is no need to worry excessively and there is no need to repeat gastroscopy several times in a short period of time, regular review is routinely recommended.
In short, the body should pay more attention to itself, do not be overly afraid of gastroscopy, worry about discomfort, but also do not take changes in their own physical condition lightly, scientific and rational view of gastroscopy and gastric diseases, the correct cognitive examination and disease.