OGD to look for oesophageal varices

[gamesmaker]

Am getting anxious abotu my forthcoming OGD. It is on Monday next week. I knw what to expect from the medical point of view but not the patient's angle. Will be pleased when it is over.

[Bigplanet]

Hi

I am had several of these. Sorry but I cant put a silver lining on this. Its not very pleasant.but the nurses are very supporting thou out the investigation. You be okay and in safe hands.it takes about 10 mins and then throat is numbed. I suspect you been told not to eat or drink for 8 hiurs prior. Dont as they will have to the procedure again. I hooe all okay, and sorry I cant say its pleasant. You be fine thou...x

[gamesmaker]

I will let you know how i get on!

[AyrshireK]

It isn't a pleasant experience sadly, my husband has now had the procedure 6 times and i've got to say that every time the letter he arrives he dreads it though I believe that some folk manage ok.

My hubby is only of slight build and supposedly difficult to intubate so each time he has opted for full sedation rather than just the throat spray as he has always needed the initial scope taken out in order for a 'repair tool' to then be inserted in order to band varices which have bled or show potential to burst. As BigPlanet has said, don't eat or drink as instructed - hubby normally has an afternoon op so can't eat or drink anything after 8am that day, for morning appointments they say from 12 midnight. It is over in minutes and with the sedation he says that he recalls bits of the procedure but not it all, on the first couple of occasions he didn't even know that they'd taken one tool out and used a 2nd.

All I can advise is try and keep calm, be brave, it is what I tell hubby each time. Staff doing and helping with the procedure are always supporting and will talk to you (and I think hold you) as they carry it out.

Depending on what support you have afterwards consider sedation if it is offered, you are not unconcious just supposedly a bit more 'out of it' and it may help you. Though you will be in recovery for a few hours with it to let you come round properly.

There was an earlier blog/question on here about getting over the procedure, that again varies from patient to patient but as hubby has always had banding during his endoscopy it takes him about a week to fully recover and be back on solid food. Others had different experiences.

All the best with your procedure, do all as instructed and try and relax as much as possible.

Sorry we can't offer more positive news on it, but, without the procedure and repairs done to my hubby I wouldn't have him with me today so it is worth the few minutes/days of discomfort.

Wishing you all the very best.

K

[gamesmaker]

Thanks K. I have already opted for the sedation! My policy on that front is to take everything on offer. ( I have a lot of missed sleep to catch up on as well !!) I have a late morning appointment - then after I have 'slept it off' we have a 2 hour drive home. Look out for my comments after the event , but I may take a day or two to face the computer - and thanks for your good wishes

[falamanala]

Hi. I had my first one earlier this year. I was very nervous, with no idea of what to expect. I had the sedation (though I cant remember opting for it, I would certainly have said yes though). I recall going into the room, climbing up on the bed lying on my left side, something put in my nose and then I woke up in recovery, had a cup of tea and a biscuit. A bit woozy afterwards and rested the remainder of the day, but all in all it was ok. Sadly they did find some varices, but not bleeding so I guess thats a positive. Was put on propranolol. Now i'm waiting for a biopsy which is even more scary, but as my consultant said "take everything on offer"! Best wishes.

[AyrshireK]

Just a wee note to you falamanala my hubby also had a biopsy and said he'd rather go through 100 of those than the endoscopy. He felt no pain and it was over quickly, he did have to lie flat for a few hours afterwards and have his BP checked every half hour as there is a potential for a bleed if your clotting agents have been affected by your liver disease. Best wishes for your procedure too. Good news that your varices haven't bled, it was a massive bleed which first made us aware of hubby's liver disease, he has had banding on each occasion of his endoscopy tests and only now after a locum consultant gastroenterologist seem him has be been put on beta-blockers (in his case carvedilol).

Anyway stay strong folks, hope all your procedures go well. Hubby and I are off to the Scottish Liver Transplant Unit on Tuesday - only to touch base and for an initial chat at this stage (we think) but it'll be great to finally see a liver specialist as we've been stuck in a rut, getting the same stuff repeated to us for a year and not having all the proper tests and treatment that many others seem to get. Hopefully all will go well for us this week too.

Good luck everyone.

K

[gamesmaker]

Thanks everyone for all the help. Watch this space!!

[falamanala]

Thanks K. For me it was a few weeks of severe abdominal pain on the left side last summer, resulting in a CT scan picking up a large blood clot in the portal vein. Months of warfarin to thin the blood, but then the next shock which was after 6 months on the blood thinners I got an appointment which I thought was to sign me off as all better (!) but which turned out to be with the gastro team who started the battery of tests for liver disease (turns out I had been on a waiting list with another department for months without realising it).

A battery of blood tests and the endoscopy. The Consultant soon took me off the warfarin as the risk from the varices was/is apparantly greater than the remainder of the clot :-s Its been a rollercoaster ride over the past year and doesnt look like its going to slow down any time soon. However, I have surprised myself with how relatively positive I'm keeping at this stage. I find the not knowing the worst and am still in a little disbelief at present. I hope the biopsy will give some answers. The doctors are having trouble identifying a cause for my liver disease, at the moment they are hanging it on weight issues.

As you say... good luck & stay strong.

[jessica29792]

I agree with everyone, the procedure really is not pleasant and there is no other way of mollycoddling it. I have had an endoscopy performed twice and a colonoscopy performed once. One endoscopy and the colonoscopy were performed to look for evidence in a diagnosis of Crohn's Disease, the other endoscopy was performed for the same reason as yourself, to look for varices due to Cirrhosis. The first two procedures I was put under full sedation for due to my age, but as I am slightly older now, my last procedure was performed with only local anaesthetic. This I regretted almost instantaneously. There are two ways in which they can perform it, the classical way through your mouth and down the back of your throat... or through your nose and down the back of your throat. Regrettably I had it done through my nose as I was told by the doctor that it is less likely to make you gag that way, although I did not find that to be the case. Not only was it seriously uncomfortable, but my nose bled afterwards (which I guess can only be expected) but it was embarrassing afterwards when the camera was taken out and bodily fluid was all over the place! I would seriously suggest going under full sedation and I would also say to get it done via your mouth, even if they say it may be better through your nose, I think both ways are just the same... At the very least, your mouth will not be sore and will not bleed as it would if you had it performed through your nose. Another thing to note is that depending on your size will depend on the size of camera that they use, which can either be a plus or a negative. As long as you try to keep calm and relaxed you should be fine! Fingers crossed for you, I hope everything goes OK.

Jessica

[gamesmaker]

Thanks everyone for being there. Also thanks for the honesty - I will update this page after the event!

[Hidden]

Honestly - my husband has had several - and banding - and he really doesn't bother about them !!!! He might be an odd one but he says they really aren't that bad - the drugs they give you make you sleepy and also make you forget what happened. I hope it goes well and you will be fine - think the thought of it is actually worse than the procedure. Xxxxxx

[gamesmaker in reply to Hidden]

Thanks Robswife. I am hoping that the sedation works that well for me !! The encouragement (and honesty) form everyone on this page has been fantastic.

[Ph1ldad]

I'm due my fourth procedure and sorry to say this is the worst procedure I've ever had including liver biopsy! I had sedation for the first but don't bother any more just have the throat spray. I'm expecting banding again so two weeks of discomfort to follow lol. If there's no banding then usually for me only 4 days. Does anyone else have pains crossing the whole chest? Was taken into hospital with suspected heart attack but it turned out to be nothing wrong with the heart. The pain is disabling but not leading to breathlessness and usually within two weeks of banding?

Good luck with the procedure and don't rush the eating and drinking advice, take your time and let things heal before you throw toast and the like at your throat

[Hidden]

An Edoscopy was my worst nightmare I cancelled it 3 times,my main worry was I would be retching, the the moment it began, but eventually I had to go as I was having an assessment at Leeds?!

So off I trundled to St Helens hospital waited a little with a lot of other nervous patients with one even pacing up and down the waiting room, then I was called in,had a chat with the nurses and then the person who would carry out the procedure then I was taken in had a spray in my mouth which tasted like bananas then a small injection the next thing I knew it was all over within 10 mins they even gave me the results to take to Leeds, it felt that easy I would have it done again today! Now bear in mind I was bricking it I was that scared. Good look I your experience is as good as mine.

[gamesmaker]

Thank you so much for your posisitve comments Card. Also Thanks for your best wishes

[Nix105]

Hi, i just wanted to add that i

have had 3 endoscopy's now and none of them have been traumatic. I have always had full sedation and throat spray, but my consultant has never suggested I have it done without so I'm surprised to read that some of you have been brave enough to try without . I have a vague recollection that something happened but have always felt fine afterwards ( although I'm lucky that I haven't needed any banding).

I have had a trans- jugular pressure test and biopsy without sedation.....now that was pretty horrendous and I've vowed never again without full sedation!!!!

All I can suggest is that if you are having an endoscopy you demand sedation or refuse treatment as it is simply because they are trying to save time by not offering it..... Well, if the NHS wasn't treating so many health tourists, perhaps us genuine UK based patients might get less barbaric treatment just so they can squeeze in a few more patients and go home early on a Friday!!

[gamesmaker in reply to Nix105]

Thanks for your positive thoughts Nix105. I have already told them I want sedation - I see no point in doing it without!

[Dan68]

Hi, I remember mine too I was worried about the whole procedure and told the doctor and nurses this while waiting to go in the op room. I had a slight panic attack with mine as I felt I was going to reach and probably be sick altough as u say I hadn't eaten anything . The camera going down my throat was ok it was the bit where he pushes the camera down in to the lower stomach felt awful not painful. I had no sedation just the banana throat spray and then I panicked and told him to take the tube out as I felt like gagging but he said just about finished and luckily he said next its all finished and no banding needed. Phew!!

[gamesmaker]

Thanks Dan68. I am planning to tell you all how I found the procedure, after the event! But I am definately having sedation I was given a straight choice.

[gamesmaker]

I have now had the OGD. I was very, very nervous - several sleepless nights but my husband has been very supportive. Never told the other family members which day it was booked for. I decided to tell the staff at the endoscopy unit that I was scared (Kings College Hospital) - they were fantastic and I had sedation as well as the throat spray. It was not as bad as I had feared and I have now 'slept it off' and am back at home. They found 3 varicose veins with red spots and these have been banded - I have to retun in 2 weeks for another OGD to check that the bands are doing their job properly. I am taking things a step at a time.

[falamanala]

Well done gamesmaker. A step at a time is the best way. Glad it went ok.

[Bolly]

Well done gamesmaker and here's hoping you can sleep better before the next one in 2 weeks as you now know with sedation its do-able. take it easy.

[Liverlover]

I had this procedure 4 times last year with banding each time. I was told to have sedation as well as the spray and didn't need telling twice. In truth it's not particularly pleasant but my own experience of liver and bone marrow biopsies were worse.

The issue I have with the ogd endoscopy and banding isn't so much the procedure itself but what it does to my stomach afterwards. The first time I had about a week of really unpleasant heart burn afterwards. We're not talking about mild discomfort, it was genuinely painful and made eating and drinking very hard, when I needed to keep up my strength due to the bloody liver disease itself! 2nd time was worse, it took almost 2 weeks for the stomach to return to normal and at the same time, I think because I was in a weakened state, as luck would have it I suffered a very painful slipped disk. But the 3rd time was better and the 4th was better still. I took omeprazole twice daily for a week before and after. I think that made a difference, plus I understand from the doc that the varices were less serious than before so required less banding.

After the 4 th time the doc told me that we could wait a year before the next endoscopy. That was great news. Honestly I'm not too worried about the next one which is in about 4 months.

I would recommend sedation, omeprazole, and taking care to ensure your stomach really is empty.. Good luck and best wishes to anyone else who has to do this. I have been told that if you don't treat the varices and you get major internal bleeding then this is as serious and life threatening as a heart attack. Looking at it that way I figure it must be worth it and you have to be grateful that medical science and technology has come such a long way!

[gamesmaker in reply to Liverlover]

Hi liverlover. Thanks for the comment. I am now 4 days after the OGD and still only eating sloppy food -have lost half a stone since last weekend (which is no bad thing) but did not want to lose weight this way. I had been on omeprazole for a while but the OGD department put me on Antepsin instead until the next OPG. I am sure this is what is making me feel sick all the time- but I do not like to stop taking it in case that does harm! My GP, whilst sympathetic, cannot really help as I am a 'one off' -I do not think they realistically come across many people with my diagnosis. Like you I was not really expecting the really severe heartburn - but reading back through the replies above, others had mentioned it. I will certainly have the throat spray as well as sedation..... take all on offer is my policy. I want to do all I can to avoid any bleeding varices -so I have to just cooperate really. Good luck