Sod's Law. Due for colonoscopy this morning, so spent the last 3 days on a white diet, no alcohol, yesterday went through the Moviprep routine to empty bowels, spent all evening on and off toilet, most unpleasant. Got up at 2am this morning for toilet, and guess what, of course, AF suddenly kicked in, been fine for weeks but suppose body under stress from no food and no insulin, low blood glucose. Went to hospital for 8am anyway but after ecg and obs they decided to cancel procedure, so going back home. While waiting to be collected by wife, checked Moviprep on line and found it is known as a regular cause of AF. Oh, great. And they will want me to go through all this again, but we may have to have a conversation about that.
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Sorry to hear this and such a nuisance to have to go through the prep again. Yes certainly try to avoid the Moviprep next time.
Fate has deemed you shouldn't have the procedure today. Go with it and better luck next time.
Jean
Ooh what a pain for you. Movieprep does dehydrate you, so you would need to drink a lot of water to compensate for that, to avoid AF.
I think there is an alternative to Movieprep, but as the purpose is to clear you out then it would have the same effect.
You should have been advised to drink a lot of water.
Oh poor ol you, that’s awful. I had to have Moviprep once - never again. I am lucky to have any intestines left 😩. Hope you get a better plan next time.
Moviprep is a salt shaker my bp spiked, usually normal, but no AF
I had a colonoscopy cancelled for a different reason and rather put me through all that again. they recommended a CT colonoscopy instead. It’s not always an alternative but it’s much, much easier.
Did you still have the Moviprep to clear your bowels?
I’m not sure. There was some prep, like a diet and some sort of laxative, but it wasn’t as harsh as the colonoscopy prep. It’s a different kind of test. Don’t be afraid to follow chase this up with the people who organise the colonoscopies, and if you like you could ask if the CT colonoscopy is a suitable alternative in your case. I’m a bit of an outlier in that laxatives have no effect on me, including moviprep and those macrogol ones. I’ve had two colonoscopies cancelled and one abandoned halfway, so they don’t think it’s worth attempting them hence the CT.
It was my second colonoscopy, first time 3 years ago, and a very draining (!) experience all round, one I would rather not repeat. Looks like it's back to the GP to discuss options. Just wanted to alert the AF community to Moviprep as a known trigger .
There is more than Moviprep going on, though. There’s also the dietary preparation and fasting which is also quite a stress on the body. There’s a significant calorie deficit and very probably low blood glucose levels. These can also play a part, potentially. It must have been so disappointing to go through all of that just to have the procedure cancelled. At my last attempt they abandoned halfway because the prep had failed and because of my previous history of prep failure they recommended the CT.
I did manage to have a colonoscopy in 2017 on the third attempt at preparation which involved a low residue diet for 7 days plus daily laxatives, then the prep, but it was recorded on my notes that it was a difficult procedure because my colon is very long and loops about all over the place. I’m just grateful I had the sedative! No AF back then so that aspect wasn’t a worry but I can see now that any aspect of the entire procedure could kick it all off in anyone diagnosed with AF already.
Yes you do, it's the same process for cleaning the bowel
I had a CT colonoscopy but the bowel prep was the same
Honestly I’d rather pay for CT or MRI than go through another standard NHS colonoscopy again.
Last time around I didn’t have any sedation (driving home) and I must say my eyes watered a bit on the two sharp turns!! But the actual procedure is only minutes of discomfort - it’s the prep that’s the real bummer!
I learned my lesson a few years ago with a gastroscopy without sedation. Never again. But at least there's no prep at that end, and you're quite right.
Oh, have the sedation and watch the show on the big TV! I also had a nice male nurse hold my hand throughout. That certainly helped! 😉
Don't think that's for me😉
Oh that's a right pain! Bless you .
Moviprep caused me to go into AFib. I went to the hospital thinking that the colonoscopy would be cancelled. But no they went ahead and afterwards put me on a drip and I converted to NSR within an hour.
How horrid an experience for you. Just a thought here, are other preps available. I say this because in the last 10 years I have had 3 colonoscopy procedures luckily none have started my AF. The stuff I have taken prior to appointment has changed, for me for the worst, the last lot all I could do was actually sit in the bath. I have been wondering if costs are being cut, the previous 2 were at Spire not NHS, the last one at the NHS I was asked if I managed all the prep. When I said I thought we had to take it all the reply was a lot of people can't manage it. I am not making any conclusions just questions I will ask if I have to have another colonoscopy. I hope things go well with you next time.
Oh dear - what a shame! I hope you have better luck next time.
Funnily enuf I had colonoscopy yesterday but I was given Plenvu. Ask for that maybe that might help
You need to find another preparation that can help clear the bowel. Lepicol is a natural preparation. Linseed preparations.
Those are fibre supplements. I add have linseed and psyllium husk daily to keep things moving along, but for a colonoscopy bowel prep you can’t have fibre products. Hence the low fibre/low residue diet beforehand.
My first colonoscopy, I went into Afib. The doctor wanted to cancel the procedure but I convinced him to do the colonoscopy anyway. After it was over they took me to the emergency room in the hospital next door and with IV medication got me back into NSR. Since then I have had several colonoscopies and I tell them to give me a special bowel prep laxative that has lots of electrolytes. That seems to have made a big difference in keeping me from going into Afib before the colonoscopy.
I had picolax as the bowel preparation. That worked fine and was not that unpleasant. I found the preparation generally much better than the colonoscopy itself which was very painful, particularly going round the corners of the sigmoid colon. That was under sedation. It was a lot worse than the ablation I had under sedation when I could feel the burns taking place.
Thanks everybody for helpful comments. Isn't that the beauty of AF? Not knowing when or why it will make its next appearance. This particular episode was very much unexpected, but sod's law dictates it would have to be just when you don't need it.
Oh no, how horrible for you. Have had a colonoscopy, and the preparation for it was worse than the procedure I thought, and you’ve had it cancelled after all that. Can only say I’m sorry to hear that, and better luck next time.
Picolax maybe ?, not sure if that's how u spell it, hope all goes well next time
I had a colonoscopy cancelled because the appointments team scheduled it too soon after my perforated bowel (must be a first!) - had been through a whole week of special diet + prep + stopped anticoagulant so was not happy! However my consultant insisted a CT scan be done not to waste the prep and I had to take a different bowel clearing med overnight to turn my bowels yellow 😱 The CT team wanted to give me buscopan to relax my bowel but couldn’t because it can’t be used if you have any kind of heart issue. So never had a physical colonoscopy. The disadvantage is that if polyps are seen you would have to have a physical colonoscopy later to remove them.
Yes, the advantage of the colonoscopy is that they can excise any polyps and test them for malignancy, also take samples for microscopic colitis. In my case, I don’t respond to the prep, not movicol, not picolax, none of those mega laxatives. So they ordered the CT instead as they said the colonoscopy prep was “too challenging for this patient”. Probably code for “we’ve got a right one here!” 🤣
😂
You have my sympathy. That prep is far worse then the investigation and to have to go through it again is just rotten. Do you know if all the stuff they use does the same? There are several possible ones.
I’ve had numerous colonoscopies with Picolax as the prep, thankfully they never triggered my AF. Even better is that I will never have to have another as it’s all gone!
Of course it’s worth exploring options for the prep but whatever the reason for the colonoscopy is still there, please don’t walk away. For many people a colonoscopy can actually be a life saver!
Agree. I’d rather have a colonoscopy than not. The CT scan isn’t ideal but colonoscopy was off the cards after the prep failed three times too often
That's the real issue. The objective is to see if there's a gastric bleed causing my anaemia, and why, and that hasn't changed. So whatever, a procedure will still have to happen, but hope for some joined up thinking about potential stress interplay between comorbidities (in my case AF, anaemia and diabetes).
I've got ulcerative colitis (for 40 yrs!) and as a veteran of many bowel procedures, the absolute best prep "stuff" for me is Miralax here in the US. It moves things along so gently (none of those exciting explosions 
), it's never triggered my AF, and I told my GI doctor I won't ever take anything else. See if it is available where you live. It has taken away my fear of AF during colonoscopies; and the dr says it does a great job of clearing everything out, but far more gently. I do sympathize! All the best, Diane S.
I should add that Miralax is fairly cheap & here it's available on the supermarket shelf, no prescription necessary.
Miralax is macrogol (generic) is an osmotic laxative that works in a similar way to Moviprep. Moviprep is an osmotic laxative. I think the dosage/concentration is the difference.
Thanks, Autumn--yes, both osmotics, but I used Moviprep yrs ago, not a good experience &, strangely, so different from my experience with Miralax. I'm sure you're right about the dosage...is it much less with Miralax? & perhaps there are different fillers/stabilizers or who knows what. Interesting story, my older British GI dr. (Chief of Gastro. at a major teaching hospital in the US) told me many years ago to quit taking the full dosage of the old gallons of stuff we used to drink, esp. if I was in a flare or bleeding--that it really was not a "one size fits all" dosage. That helped, because I was being scoped often, already had severe diarrhea w/ bleeding, & the prep made me so miserable. Dosages usu. follow research study parameters, which aren't perfect and sure don't take into account the severity of the disease, our symptoms, weight, etc. (I'm a former lawyer so I should mention I'm not giving this as advice to anyone, just relating my story, right? ) Wishing only the best outcomes to us all... Diane
UC is certainly a very nasty condition, especially the flare ups. Most people are fine with the daily macrogol sachets, but in my case it just draws water into the colon and doesn’t go anywhere and afterwards it’s a case of non-stop “incontinence” (sorry, TMI!). For most people it just keeps things moving along nicely, so my experience can’t be extrapolated to everyone else by any means. I think it probably is the concentration of Moviprep that makes it so unpleasant for those “clear outs” even though it’s supposedly balanced for electrolytes. Considering the paltry diet and the fasting, I’m not surprised it can set off AF.
I had a CT colonoscopy several years ago as Consultant wasnt happy with my spinal problems and normal one, had picolax to clear bowel, but that was before I had any problems with AF
I had not heard of Moviprep. I thought you were referring to making popcorn and setting up a few beverages by your favorite chair in front of the big-screen TV.
I had a colonoscopy last year which included "cleaning out" laxatives, but I have not had "Moviprep". I was still experiencing periodic episodes of Afib at that time but did not have any during the colonoscopy prep or procedure.
I hope you can find a safe solution.
Well, you can watch it live on the big TV screen but I don’t think popcorn is allowed! 😂
From the Discovery channel: "Searching for Polyps" or "Exploring Uranus"
It would be better than a lot of programming we have in the U.S. now!
New research is indicating that the Poop test is nearly as accurate as a colonoscopy so why would any put themselves through that test is beyond me. My sister puts herself through this and I won't.
The poop test only detects cancer. The colonoscopy will show polyps which can in future turn cancerous. That is the advantage of the colonoscopy as the polyps can be removed before they turn. The CT colonoscopy is probably a good compromise, as if polyps are detected then a colonoscopy is indicated.
Yes, the poop test is for screening purposes only. It can’t diagnose anything.
If a person knows the stress the prep is going to create is the only reason I would suggest not to do one. Colonoscopy is invasive and you can have all you want be my guest. I personally DO NOT have any faith in the corrupt medical establishment. All the best.
🤣🤣🤣🤣 I would sooner have a colonoscopy than undetected cancer.
The poop test detects blood in the stool. It may detect cancer, but also haemorrhoids and some even gastric bleeding from a stomach ulcer, but it’s fairly non specific. It’s a screening test rather than an investigative procedure. If blood is detected then more tests are required to determine what the cause of the bleeding is.
I had a CT Colonography within the last month and couldn’t believe how easy it was, the prep stuff was not that unpleasant to take and the actual imaging was painless and fairly quick, I must admit to being pleasantly surprised after my experience with the normal NHS colonoscopy. Just one problem the scan showed 2 polyps, one close to where I have severe diverticulitis and letter stated would be complicated to remove and the other near the colon, although the letter states no urgency at the moment but the polyps could undergo change within the next 5/10 years and they want to remove them but yes, for that I have to have a normal NHS colonoscopy. I wondered if I could be sedated virtually knocked out to cope with it, I am seeing a Gastroenterologist on 3rd November 23 and see what he has to say. So unfortunately, although the CT Colonography scan is excellent to see any problems if you have got them you still need the other endoscopy as in my case to remove polyps. Sorry that your experience was so unpleasant!
Rosie did you have Gastrografin prep? Glad it was ok for you
Yes I did and I didn’t find it unpleasant
That’s so good to know Rosie as I have to start tomorrow and have been dreading it. Thank you
Hi I have take Gastografin in 2 days for CT scan next day, the information says that i will be given an injection of Buscopan to help with cramps. Did you have it just asking as a previous reply stated that shoukd not be given if you have a heart condition?
Hello, I took the Gastrograffin but I mentioned I had AF and they said we won’t give you Buscopan then. I double checked with them when I went in for scan. Be prepared that the Gastrograffin will probably do its work during the night. Best of luck.
Thank you Nan1, I will let them know X
Sorry another question I had to stop endoxaban 72hrs before my colonoscopy t(hat went wrong and had to be stopped) hence the CT scan but it does not say on the form anywhere that i need to stop it before scan. Are you on anticoagulants and did you have to stop it? thanks for your help x
No problem. Happy to help. No I didn’t have to stop Apixiban. Good luck
Thank you x
I understand your frustration. My husband's colonoscopy got cancelled the night before because we all tested positive for covid. The only good thing is that we took the covid tests before he started drinking the "happy juice", so he was hangry but spared spending the night in the bathroom.
Our dietary changes were the same but his bowel prep was different from mine, so there must be other options out there for you. I wonder if there's a way to find out what it was in the Moviprep that triggered the afib so you don't do another prep only to have it contain that element and trigger your afib again.
Colonoscopies are important (all three of mine removed precancerous polyps), so I hope you're able to have yours successfully.
That would have been so disappointing. I had a colonoscopy in March and was put on 1.25mg bisoprolol a week beforehand which worked well. The Moviprep had no effect on my heart, and I've had a different laxative since that was fine, too. Both cleared me out fully the evening before the appointment so I was able to sleep without interruption.
I'm surprised they didn't get you to take an extra dose of a beta blocker or similar to calm the heart.
Steve
Maxed out on atenolol. Not sure if endo man was able to consult with cardio man (just down the corridor) but he was pretty quick to cancel, didn't fancy it at all. Maybe a good thing, hadn't had any anticoagulant for three days and he didn't want a stroke victim on his operating table. Neither did I, I suppose.
I had the same problem. I went into AF a very nasty attack during the bowel cleanse. My EP told me it's probably because of electrolyte imbalance. I attended my appointment and the radiologist consultant ( It was a private CT colonoscopy) decided to go ahead even though my heart rate was hovering around 170bpm. He said I had done the hard part! The AF episode went on for another 24 hours before reverting to NSR. I suppose I am glad it went ahead couldn't face that again 😔
The CT is much, much easier and quicker. I think it would be do-able in AF but the usual colonoscopy might not be so easy as it’s invasive and arguably more stressful, and certainly more of an ordeal if in AF. I think the likelihood of an electrolyte imbalance on that prep stuff is pretty high
PEG (polietilenoglicol) the key substance in Moviprep and many other laxatives is a known cause for AFib.
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