How Long Does an Endoscopy Take?

How long does an endoscopy take? It’s a question that you may be asking yourself after being told by your doctor that you need to have the procedure done. Having recently gone through an endoscopy myself, I feel qualified to answer a lot of questions on the subject. I understand very well that an endoscopy can be rather frightening to many people. The prospect of having the surprisingly long endoscopic tube stuffed down one’s throat is usually enough to give most people the jitters. So, how long can you expect the procedure to take?

Duration of an endoscopy procedure

The endoscopy procedure takes between 5 and 10 minutes. However, with preparatory time, you can expect to spend about 30 minutes at your doctor’s. In most instances, you will have an endoscopy done as an outpatient. That means you will be heading back home as soon as the procedure is done.

What in your upper gastrointestinal tract?

In this article, our main focus is on the time that is needed for a doctor to perform an endoscopy. It’s worth pointing out that an endoscopy is carried out in your upper gastrointestinal tract. This are is also referred as to the upper stomach. But what’s in there?

The first part of this tract is the mouth. It’s is usually the part that is used as an entryway for the flexible endoscopic tube. From there, the tube is inserted into the esophagus. You actually need to swallow it to allow it to go down.

The doctor will take a look at your esophagus to see if there are any issues in there. Some people get damage done to this organ due to excessive acid coming up. From the esophagus, the endoscopic tube will be inserted into your stomach. It will go all the way to the opening of the small intestines.

What to expect

So far we have answered the answer to the question; “how long does an endoscopy take?” I have already noted that most people worry about having the procedure done. The good news is that there is nothing to fear. An endoscopy is one of the best ways of diagnosing issues in your upper GI.

Rather than relying on blood and other tests, many of which can be non conclusive, an endoscopy allows your doctor to actually see what is happening in your stomach. Not only that, but it also gives them the ability to carry out a stomach biopsy.

Samples that are collected during the process are sent to the lab, where they can give you a definitive answer as to the causes of whatever it is that’s ailing you.

My own experience with an endoscopy

A lot of people worry that they are going to be in pain during an endoscopy. That is not actually the case, though I admit I was pretty worried while waiting to have the procedure done. I had been suffering from persistent chest pains that came and went over the years. A string of doctors had carried out various tests, including ECGs and chest x-rays.

All these tests showed that there was nothing wrong with me. As a final resort, it was decided that I should undergo an endoscopy. I booked for one with a specialist, and I admitted to him over the phone that I was pretty worried. He told me that there was nothing to worry about. I suspected that he was just being a doctor.

Anyway, on the morning of the procedure, I woke up pretty scared. I had been told not to eat anything that morning, so I immediately set out for the doctor’s office.

Upon arrival, I was made to fill a few forms, most of which concerned my health. Had I had an operation? Did I smoke? Had I had any teeth filled? Did I have high blood pressure?

The procedure itself probably took about 6 minutes. I had a scary moment when I almost vomited while the tube was being inserted into my stomach. Other than that, I was pretty fine. Of course, there was always the discomfort, a lot of which came from the air that was being pumped into my stomach.

What will the endoscopy find?

The overall goal during an endoscopy is to find out what, if anything, is causing your illness. We have already answered the question how long does an endoscopy take? Now we will look at some of the results that you can expect from the process.

In my case, it was discovered that I had gastritis. That’s inflammation of the lining of the stomach. It’s a disease that’s caused by a wide range of things, including alcohol, infection by a bacteria called h-pylori and overuse of non-steroidal anti-inflammation drugs. These drugs include aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxen.

The procedure can also detect the presence of tumors within your stomach. In that case, the doctor will take samples to check whether or not they are cancerous. There are other issues that can be detected during the procedure, including stomach ulcers.

Summary

In this post, I answered the question; “how long does an endoscopy take?” It was noted that an endoscopy is not a very long procedure. As such, you will be in and out of your doctor’s office in less than 30 minutes.

The procedure itself actually takes between 5 and 10 minutes. Here we are looking at the time between when the doctor inserts the endoscopic tube into your stomach and the time when he withdraws it. The rest is preparatory and post procedure time.

The aim of this article was to dispel some of your worry around the procedure. It’s nothing to be scared about. Really! In a way, this is the best procedure that you are going to ever have if you have been having gastrointestinal issues.

An endoscopy gives your doctor an overview of what is happening within your stomach. The procedure is done in your upper stomach. If you need to have the lower part of your digestive system looked at, you will have to get a colonoscopy.

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