All of us at Digestive Associates of Houston have made a strong commitment to providing informative resources to patients and their loved ones wishing to enhance their understanding of various digestive diseases and/or procedures. So, please explore this site and contact us if you have any questions.

Open Access Colonoscopy 

Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer-related mortality in the United States . Screening for colon cancer significantly reduces mortality at costs comparable to other cancer screening procedures.

Digestive Associates of Houston, PA now offers "Open Access Colonoscopy" to healthy patients who are eligible for colon cancer screening.   In order to improve the convenience of the exam, a pre-procedure visit may no longer be required for some patients(with exceptions), saving patient time and effort. 

In order to schedule a screening colonoscopy, please download the Open Access Colonoscopy Package. Please note, insurance benefits for colonoscopy screening are varies amongst all insurance companies. For instance, some insurance companies may only allow one routine colonoscopy for every 10 years for beneficiaries beginning at the age of 50. Therefore we highly recommend pateints checking their insurance benefits prior to complete the forms.

After completing the forms, please fax them to 713-795-5254.

All the above information will be subject to review by our physician and insurance verification. Our office will contact the patient within 10 business days to schedule an colonoscopy appointment.

=================================================================

What we do....

Our practice includes diagnostic and therapeutic management of gastrointestinal illnesses, both on an outpatient and inpatient level. We specialize in treating the diseases of:

esophagus
stomach
small intestine
colon
rectum
liver
bile ducts
pancreas

What is Endoscopy?

Endoscopy is an important tool for gastroenterologists dealing with problems of the digestive tract. Endoscopes are thin, flexible telescopes that allow gastroenterologist to examine most areas of the digestive system. At the end of the endoscope is a tiny television camera, which allows the doctor to see the lining of the digestive tract up close and in color on a television monitor. Many diagnoses can be made simply by looking at the video images, and at recordings taken on video tape or prints. However, it is often helpful to take small specimens of tissue from the lining of the organs for detailed analysis in the laboratory. By this means it is possible to detect the presence and type of any infection or inflammation, and to look for cancerous cells. These specimens are taken with small biopsy forceps. You do not feel these probings. Smaller tissue samples can be obtained for a cytology examination, using a small brush device.

Types of Endoscopy:

Capsule Endoscopy

The Capsule is easily swallowed, travels painlessly through the digestive tract, and is naturally passed from the body. On its journey, the Capsule captures and transmits video images to a wearable recorder worn by the patient. The Capsule is intended for visualization of the small bowel mucosa and is used as an adjunctive tool in the detection of abnormalities of the small intestine.

Click here to download Capsule Endoscopy Instruction

Colonoscopy and Sigmoidoscopy

These types of Endoscopies refer to endoscopy examinations of the bowel, through the anus. The sigmoidoscopy procedure examines only the distal one or two feet of the large bowel (anus, rectum and sigmoid colon), whereas colonoscopy refers to examination of the entire large bowel (colon), when necessary.

Click here to download Colonoscopy Preparation (Halflytely) Instruction;

Click here to download Colonoscopy Preparation with Osomo-Prep Instruction
(for morning procedures only).

Click here to download Colonoscopy Preparation with Osomo-Prep Instruction
(for afternoon procedures only).

Click here to download Sigmodoscopy Preparation Instruction

EGD (Esophagogastroduodenoscopy)

EGD refers to examination of the esophagus (swallowing passage, gullet), stomach and upper part of the small intestine (duodenum). The endoscope is passed gently through the mouth.

Click here to download EGD Preparation Instruction

Endoscopic Ultrasound (EUS)

It is an extension of the endoscopies (EGD or Colonoscopy). The endoscope has a tiny sound transmitter in the tip which (through reflections like radar) can produce pictures of the tissues outside the intestine. It is one of the most important break-throughs in digestive diseases in recent years. During this procedure, an ultrasound probe on the tip of an endoscopy can be placed in close proximity to a tumor or cyst in the wall of the gut or in an adjacent organ, such as pancreas. Through the projection of high-frequency sound waves, superb, high-resolution images are obtained, allowing for more accurate diagnosis and staging of esophgeal, gastric, pancreatic and rectal cancers. Endoscopy ultrasound also permits safer diagnostic needle sampling of benign and maligant tumors.

Click here to download EUS Preparation Instruction

ERCP (Endoscopic Retrograde Cholangiopancreatography)

It is an extension of upper endoscopy, which allows gastroenterologists to probe the ductal (drainage) systems of the liver, bile ducts and pancreas. After finding the common drainage hole for these ductal systems (the papilla of Vater), the doctor injects dye, and x-ray pictures are taken.

Click here to download ERCP Preparation Instruction

Enteroscopy

It refers to endoscopic examination of the small intestine beyond the upper part (duodenum). Since the small intestine is long and tortuous, longer instruments and special techniques are necessary.

Click here to download Enteroscopy Preparation Instruction

Other:

Esophgeal motility and pH 24 hours study

A 24-hour esophageal pH study measures how much stomach acid backs up into the food pipe in 24 hours.

Risks of Endoscopy:

Endoscopy has become very popular throughout the world because it provides good diagnoses, and allows many treatments which previously required abdominal surgery. However, no medical technique is completely safe. Endoscopy has potential complications. Wed do everything in our power to prevent these complications, but patient should understand what can happen. Details are given where the individual procedures are described in more detail.

There are two types of complication – general and specific. The general complications are those which can occur (rarely) during any type of endoscopic procedure. Thus, there may be a reaction to the sedation medicines, or the stress of the procedure may have an adverse effect on an existing illness (i.e. heart or lung disease). Very rarely the tip of the endoscope may go through a weakened part of the stomach wall. This is called a perforation, and almost always requires surgical operation. Some complications relate only to special types of endoscopy. Thus, any endoscopic treatment that includes cutting (for example, removal of polyps or stones) can result in bleeding – which can usually be controlled through the endoscope. ERCP manipulation of the pancreas can cause pancreatitis.

Some complications are relatively mild (i.e. a sore vein for a week or two where the medicine has been injected). Others such as bleeding and perforation can be quite serious, resulting in long periods in hospital and operations. The chance of dying after an endoscopic procedure depends on the circumstances. For the simple procedures (i.e. upper endoscopy and sigmoidoscopy), in a healthy patient, the risk if vanishingly small – probably one in 5,000 procedures. When endoscopy is being done to treat a life threatening condition in a patient who is severely ill, the risk of a fatal outcome may be 1 or 2%.

Because of all these variations, it is not possible to generalize about the risks of endoscopy, so it is necessary to discuss these individually with our physicians.