Goals: The aim of this study was to identify predictors for the identification of stigmata of recent hemorrhage (SRH) on colonic diverticula.
Background: Several factors influence the identification of SRH in the diagnosis of colonic diverticular bleeding.
Study: A total of 396 patients hospitalized for lower gastrointestinal bleeding were analyzed. Comorbidities, medications, timing of colonoscopy [<24 h (h); urgent, 24 to 48 h, >48 h], preparation, expert colonoscopist, use of a cap, use of a water-jet scope, total colonoscopy, and procedure time (over 60 min) were assessed. A multivariable logistic regression model was used to estimate odds ratio (OR) and 95% confidence interval (CI).
Results: Two hundred fifteen patients were diagnosed with colonic diverticular bleeding and 37 (17%) were identified with SRH. Urgent colonoscopy (OR, 8.4; 95% CI, 2.3-30; P<0.01), expert colonoscopist (OR, 3.0; 95% CI, 1.2-7.3; P=0.02), use of a cap (OR, 3.4; 95% CI, 1.4-8.0; P=0.01), and use of water-jet scope (OR, 5.8; 95% CI, 2.3-15; P<0.01) were found to be independent predictive factors for SRH. The accuracy of these factors in combination was 0.90 (95% CI, 0.85-0.96) as measured by area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC-AUC). SRH identification rate was higher in the urgent (22%) than in the 24 to 48 hours (2.9%, P<0.01) and >48 hours groups (1.0%, P<0.01), showing a tendency to decrease with time (P<0.01 for trend).
Conclusions: Factors of urgent colonoscopy, expert colonoscopist, use of a cap, and use of water-jet scope are useful for identifying SRH diverticula.