Colonoscopy Findings at Divine Mercy Hospital-Father Bash Foundation, South-Western Uganda: A 6 Years Retrospective Analysis

Background: Colonoscopy is the gold standard for screening and diagnosis of several colorectal disease conditions such as colorectal cancer, polyps, inflammatory bowel disease and other forms of colitis. Lower GI symptoms requiring colonoscopy include: GI bleeding, chronic constipation, recurrent abdominal pain, chronic diarrhoea and mucoid stools among others. This study aimed at documenting the indications and findings among patients done colonoscopy at Divine Mercy Hospital (DMH) in South Western Uganda. Methods: This was a 6-year retrospective review of records of patients from whom a colonoscopy was done at DMH from October, 2018 to September, 2024. The data that was extracted included patient’s demographics, indications, findings at colonoscopy and histology results where applicable. Data analysis was done using Stata version 17 and it was summarized in frequency tables, means and standard deviation. A student’s t-test and or chi square p-value < 0.05 was considered significant. The study was approved by Mbarara University of Science and Technology Research Ethics committee. Results: Reports of 389 patients who had undergone colonoscopy were retrieved. The mean age of participants was 54.1 (±18.7) years. Majority were males (63.5%), and majority presented with lower GI bleeding (57.3%). Tumors were seen among 55 patients, with anorectal tumors dominating (n = 32). Other common findings included Hemorrhoids (n = 95, 24.4%), colitis (n = 54, 13.9%), and inflammatory bowel disease (n = 27, 6.9%). Among 106 patients who had suspicious lesions warrantying biopsy, 49 (46.2%) patients had confirmed cancer and these were predominantly adenocarcinomas. 120 patients (30.8%) had normal findings at colonoscopy. Conclusion: In South Western Uganda, the most common indication for colonoscopy was lower GI bleeding. Hemorrhoids, colitis and inflammatory bowel disease were the main benign findings at colonoscopy. Several patients also had lower GI malignancies and these were predominantly adenocarcinomas. This study highlights the importance of colonoscopy in diagnosing and managing lower GI conditions in a resource-limited setting.