Canada
A 42-year-old female asked:

Hi is there anyway of getting out of having a colonoscopy. would a ct scan,mri, barium enema or any type of other test work to detect why i have black stools because i really dont want a colonoscopy please help thanks. really would like a ct scan?

1 doctor answer1 doctor weighed in
Dr. Marvin Ott
Emergency Medicine 22 years experience
At present: there is no suitable replacement for a screening or diagnostic colonoscopy. There is a CT procedure known of as a "virtual colonoscopy," but it lacks the diagnostic sensitivity to truly replace a colonoscopy. If your doctor is doing the colonoscopy to diagnose a particular condition, it is particularly important, as they may need to do a biopsy, which can't be done by CT. Hope this helps!
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Last updated Jan 5, 2019

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