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Barium Enema Complications



 Submitted by Nic on June 3, 2011
There are a number of different medical conditions that can create problems for the colon and rectum. These medical conditions include auto immune diseases like ulcerative colitis and progressive life threatening diseases like colon cancer. With most medical conditions, proper and quick diagnosis is essential as it ensures that the condition gets treated as quickly as possible. When it comes to conditions like cancer, this is an essential requirement. Cancer is progressive and will cause more and more damage if it is allowed to continue without any treatment.

A barium enema is conducted on a patient who has followed a restrictive diet and who has not consumed any food for up to 12 hours before the test. This procedure may be uncomfortable for some patients as it involves the insertion of a tube into the anus. This tube is used to feed contrast material to the area that is being scanned. This contrast material helps to coat the lining of the area being scanned. When this happens, the images produced by X-ray, CT and MRI scans will much clearer and much more useful. The coating of the lining will also ensure that abnormal growths get coated. These growths will then become visible following which the appropriate treatment can be performed.

As with any medical procedure, there are some barium enema complications that need to be taken into account before the procedure has been performed. The patient can discuss these barium enema risks with his or her doctor to ensure that there is no serious problem that occurs and that the relevant required steps are taken to ensure that in the event of some complication, the correct medical equipment is available. The barium enema pregnancy risks are many and therefore it is of prime importance that you mention to your doctor if you are pregnant.

When one examines the list of barium enema complications it is important to note that the chances of these problems occurring are extremely low. These barium enema complications occur in a handful of cases while most cases experience minimal or no side effects. Some barium enema complications include bowel perforation and hemorrhaging. These problems occur if the bowel is overfilled by the technician or if there is some weakness in the bowel walls that has been caused by the condition that is affecting the patient. Some patients may even experience a reaction to the barium contrast which can be termed under barium enema complications. This reaction could affect the viability of the test which is why the test will be postponed if there is such a complication.
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