The Effect of Intravenous Fluid Therapy before Colonoscopy on Arterial Blood Oxygen Saturation, Heart Rate, Blood Pressure, Patients’ Pain, and Duration of Colonoscopy

Colonoscopy is a valuable diagnostic method that patients are not willing to undergo because of the fear of its complications. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of intravenous fluid therapy prior to colonoscopy on blood circulation parameters and pain in patients and duration of Colonoscopy. This randomized clinical trial was conducted on 60 patients referred to the Endoscopic Department of Ghaem Hospital in Mashhad in 2016. Elderly people were randomly assigned to two groups of 30 as control and intervention groups. Patients in the intervention group received one liter of solution 1/3 normal saline, 2/3 D5W, one hour before colonoscopy. Before and 1, 3, 5, 9, and 10 minutes after colonoscopy, arterial blood oxygen saturation, heart rate, and blood pressure in both groups were measured and recorded in the checklist. 2 hours later, the patients’ pain levels were measured by Circulation Parameters checklist. The numerical value of pain was measured, and the durations of colonoscopy in both groups were also measured and recorded by a timer. The mean age of the patients in the intervention group was 38.4 ± 13.6 years and in the control group was 44.2 ± 14.4 years. The results of post start colonoscopy stage showed that there was a significant difference between the two groups in the mean arterial oxygen saturation after 5 and 9 minutes of fluid therapy (p < 0.001), systolic blood pressure 1 and 10 minutes after fluid therapy (p = 0.047), and diastolic blood pressure 5 minutes after the fluid therapy (p = 0.049). The mean duration of colonoscopy in the intervention group (18.15 ± 4.21 min) was significantly lower than the control group (22.13 ± 5.29 min, p = 0.002). Also, the mean pain score 2 hours after colonoscopy was significantly lower in the intervention group (1.53 ± 1.65) compared with the control group (3.26 ± 3.24, p = 0.010). The results of this study indicate the positive effect of fluid therapy prior to the onset of colonoscopy on the patients’ circulatory parameters, the duration of colonoscopy, and the patients’ pain. Therefore, with this effective, cost-effective, and safe intervention, patients can have a better experience in performing this diagnostic test.