FRIDAY, Oct. 30, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- Regular exposure to inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) surveillance is associated with higher polyp detection during IBD surveillance colonoscopy, according to a study published online Oct. 28 in the Journal of Crohn's and Colitis.
Keith Pohl, M.B.B.S., from the Torbay and South Devon NHS Foundation Trust in Torquay, England, and colleagues used the U.K. National Endoscopy Database (NED) to examine the quality of IBD surveillance and identify factors associated with procedural quality. The analysis included all 588,841 colonoscopies uploaded to NED between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2024.
Overall, 2.7 percent of colonoscopies were IBD surveillance. The researchers found that 56.8 percent of endoscopists performed at least one surveillance procedure, while 18.9 percent performed one or more per month, delivering 57.1 percent of all surveillance. The quality of IBD surveillance was high (cecal intubation, 96.1 percent; median withdrawal time, 13 minutes); adequate bowel preparation was 80.2 percent, which was below target. Higher adjusted polyp detection was seen for endoscopists performing one or more surveillance per month (odds ratio, 1.26), and higher detection was seen for procedures allocated extended time (odds ratio, 1.40).
"IBD cancer checks are important, but unlike organized bowel cancer screening, they do not have the same protected capacity," principal author Shahida Din, from the University of Edinburgh Institute of Cancer and Genetics, said in a statement. "A small proportion of endoscopists perform most of these checks, and regular experience, more time, and use of dye were associated with finding more polyps."
Several authors disclosed ties to the biopharmaceutical industry.
