A retrospective evaluation of patient acceptance of computed tomography colonography ("virtual colonoscopy") in comparison with conventional colonoscopy in an average risk screening population

Purpose: To evaluate patient acceptance of computed tomography (CT) colonography compared with conventional colonoscopy by means of a self-assessed questionnaire. Material and Methods: Four-hundred-and-one patients with valid address information from our patient collective were preselected. Patient acceptance was evaluated retrospectively using a self-assessed questionnaire. The patients underwent CT colonography in our institution using 4 x or 16 x multi-detector row (MDR) CT. Two-hundred-and-forty-six patients returned a completed questionnaire, 157 of these indicating that they had undergone both virtual and conventional colonoscopy. Results: One-hundred-and-twenty (76.4%) of the 157 patients would undergo another CT colonography if necessary, while only 14 patients would not. One-hundred-and-sixteen (73.9%) patients favored the actual examination procedure of CT colonography (P<0.0001), while only 6.4% preferred the conventional method. Preparation prior to CT colonography was experienced as more convenient than preparation prior to conventional colonoscopy (52.2% versus 14%). Conclusion: CT colonography was preferred in terms of both preparation and the actual procedure itself.