Does the Presence of an Endoscopy Nurse Influence Adenoma Detection Rate during Colonoscopy

An endoscopy nurse acting as a second observer during colonoscopy may result in an increased adenoma detection rate (ADR). The impact a nurse can have on ADR may be related to endoscopy nurse experience. Common practice is to have an endoscopy nurse present in the procedure room during colonoscopy but not specifically dedicated to observation of the procedure. The objective of this study was to identify factors associated with increased rates of adenoma detection during colonoscopy. This was a retrospective study performed on 2001 adults who had colonoscopy in the year 2012 at a tertiary referral institution. Complete data were obtained for 1972 patients. Overall ADR was 21.9% among 17 endoscopists. Multivariate analysis of data was done to identify variables independently associated with ADR. Two nurses were independently associated with increased ADR, as were three endoscopists. Additional variables associated with increased ADR were male gender, patients of increasing age, patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) and a number of indications for procedure.