Measurement of quality in colonoscopy using a specially dedicated reporting system in the endoscopic unit of a tertiary hospital

Aims Different quality indicators have been proposed by the European Society of Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ESGE) guidelines, to measure and evaluate quality in colonoscopy. In this study, we aimed to evaluate the ability to assess these performance measures after the introduction of their mandatory recording in the reporting system in an Endoscopic Unit.

Methods We retrospectively interrogated the colonoscopy database of our Gastroenterology Department in a tertiary hospital setting, over a period starting from 08/04/2024 (start-date of the mandatory recording of the quality indicators in the reporting system), up to 05/09/2024. In total, 1148 colonoscopy reports were retrieved, out of which 69 duplicates and one sigmoidoscopy were excluded from analysis. One thousand seventy-eight colonoscopy reports were included in the final analysis.

Results The current reporting system allowed recording and measuring of the following key performance measures: 1) rate of adequate bowel preparation: 90.3% [95%CI (89.4-92.4%)], 2) cecal intubation rate: 95.5% [95%CI (94.2-96.9%)], 3) polyp detection rate (PDR): 48.3% [95%CI (44.8-51.7%)], 4) withdrawal time reporting field was optional and was filled in 89.9% of reports and demonstrated that in 88.9% (95%CI: 87-90,7%) of these colonoscopies, withdrawal time was more than 6 minutes. The present reporting system did not allow the measurement and the evaluation of the following key performance measures: appropriate polypectomy technique, complication rates, patient experience and appropriate post-polypectomy surveillance.

Conclusions This study demonstrated how a specially dedicated reporting system for colonoscopies with mandatory fields allowed the measurement of some of the key performance measures recommended by ESGE. Further upgrade of the existing reporting system could lead to a more complete assessment of the colonoscopy quality and identify areas for potential improvement.

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Artikel online veröffentlicht:
27. März 2025