ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the safety, feasibility, clinical value, indication, and distribution of diagnostic diseases in different age groups of colonoscopy in pediatric patients.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>A retrospective analysis was performed on the data of pediatric patients receiving colonoscopy from April 2013 to June 2016 at The Sixth Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University. Pediatric patients were divided into 0-6 years group (n=57) and 7-14 years group (n=172). Indication for colonoscopy, detective events and diagnostic diseases distribution were compared between two groups.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>A total of 229 pediatric patients (male 157 and female 72) were divided into 0-6 years group (57/229, 24.9%) and 7-14 years group(172/229, 75.1%). The main Indications for colonoscopy included abdominal pain (81/229, 35.4%), hematochezia (64/229, 27.9%), crissum abscess or fistula (40/229, 17.5%). Hematochezia was the most common complaint in 0-6 years group (40/57, 70.2%), while abdominal pain in 7-14 years group (74/172, 43.0%). Completion rate between 0-6 years group and 7-14 years group was not significantly different (87.72% vs. 85.47%, χ=0.181, P=0.671). Only one pediatric patient (1/229, 0.4%) developed transient oxygen desaturation and recovered quickly after oxygen supply and aspiration of sputum. No serious complications such as bleeding, perforation or death occurred. Including 45 pediatric patients in 0-6 years group and 102 pediatric patients in 7-14 years group, a total of 147 pediatric patients (147/229, 64.2%) were found to have colorectal lesions. Inflammatory bowel disease (57/147, 38.8%), colonic polyps (40/147, 27.2%) and other intestinal inflammation (39/147, 26.5%) were the main findings. The most frequent diagnosis in 0-6 years group was colonic polyps (28/57, 49.1%), among them, 25 pediatric patients (25/28, 89.3%) were with the complaint of hematochezia. The most frequent diagnosis in 7-14 years group was Inflammatory bowel disease (54/172, 31.4%), among them, 29 pediatric patients (29/54, 53.7%) were with the complaint of abdominal pain.</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>Pediatric colonoscopy is safe and effective. Hematochezia and abdominal pain are the most common complaints in 0-6 years group and 7-14 years group respectively. Colonic polyps and inflammatory bowel disease are the most frequent diagnosis in 0-6 years group and 7-14 years group respectively.</p>