Was the Golden Age for Barium enemas years after the golden age had peaked?

I had 2 age 9 and 17 . 9 was a scary at the hospital after prep at home and another one but liked having new person giving. Second was 17 so embarrassing I knew they noticed I liked it😉 1976. and 1984.

I don't know in the last 10 years , 3 enemas i hav.

e had lots of barium.

1 enemas, 2 milk shakes and 3 cookies ( Oreos with spiked cream ) barium has been a steady companion on the ' medical Mystery tour".along with enfoscopy,colonoscopy sigmoidescopy and probably had the entire white house press pool of cameras in my urethra .I have no orifice mysteries ,nut been note and ears have escaped .

AlecJ What reason was given for having one at age 10?

What year was this?

Before or after the development of colonoscopy?

Efun42 What was the stated reason why you got one?

Again what year

My Mom had one when she was 14 and I have found nothing in her medical history that would justify it

That would have been 1974

Back in the mid 80's I had a friend who's wife was a nurse. All she did was give BE. SO, they were alive and well then. Only a few years ago, a friend of mine had one. What for I don't recall, so BE are still alive and well. Maybe not needed as much but still in use.

I don’t know what a barium shows that a colonoscopy doesn’t. Does an X-ray provide different information than a colonoscopy? Maybe a medical pro could enlighten us.

Barium enemas are cheap

I would suspect that Barium Enemas are largely a thing of the past. The time involved likely has rendered them less efficient than a colonoscopy. If problems are observed, a colonoscopy is likely necessary to correct thing such as polyps etc. CT scans, with contrast (oral or rectal), are likely more efficient and can be done easily in an outpatient setting.

I do recall that my mom was scheduled for one on a Monday AM. Her prep was to begin 24 hrs prior. At a family gathering on Sunday, she ate dinner in the afternoon and had a brownie for desert. When challenged by my aunt, mom said she would just have to take more enemas that night and in the morning. Grandma was quite busy taking care of the prep for mom. We kids thought it great that mom was getting enemas rather than us.

I had a Barium enema, maybe 5 years ago, ish , was no big deal , maybe as im used to enemas ?

Another thread about Barium Enema Experiences got me thinking whether they are still used given advancements in medicine (colonoscopy, CT scan, etc). This thread is interesting. An article from the Mayo Clinic stated they were used “in the past”. Are there any medical diagnostic tests that still are best accomplished with a Barium Enema and XRays??

“In the past, doctors used barium enema to investigate the cause of abdominal symptoms. But this test has mostly been replaced by newer imaging tests that are more accurate, such as CT scans.”

https://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/barium-enema/about/pac-20393008

I underwent one in the late 1980s, it wasn’t double contrast so I missed the air business. I no longer remember why it was ordered. After that it was colonoscopies only. Though BEs aren’t totally gone, a friend of mind underwent one recently, I guess it depends on the doctor and the circumstances.

Seems like I should look to see if I’ve posted here before posting again!😀

I never have heard of a “Golden Age” for barium enemas in the same way as a “Golden Age” for the home remedy enema. I also have not heard about the usage of barium enemas going out of fashion since the colonoscopy has become mainstream. Barium enemas now are used for different purposes than the colonoscopy although earlier they were used to search for blockage, tumors and other abnormalities in the gut. Barium is a radioactive substance that makes abnormalities more visible as other radioactive substances do when used in other parts of the body.

I never have heard of a “Golden Age” for barium enemas in the same way as a “Golden Age” for the home remedy enema. I also have not heard about the usage of barium enemas going out of fashion since the colonoscopy has become mainstream. Barium enemas now are used for different purposes than the colonoscopy although earlier they were used to search for blockage, tumors and other abnormalities in the gut. Barium is a radioactive substance that makes abnormalities more visible as other radioactive substances do when used in other parts of the body.

@Easy123. Thanks for the update - I know dyes and other contrasts elements are used for MRIS etc. - didn't realize Barium Enemas were still being used. I think what the OP meant by “Golden Age” for Barium Enemas was when they were routinely used for diagnostics that have now (largely) been replaced by other tests. Ditto the “Golden Age for Enemas is basically when they were routinely used for medical ailments before they became ”out of favor" in the medical and home remedy communities.

Barium, oh my god I think I shit chalkboard chalk for two days afterwards.

Recently, I was in an imaging facility getting an MRI of my foot. As I was following the technician, I passed by a room with what had to be a large empty enema bag laying across an Xray table. The technician was a friendly female so as I was leaving the room, I asked, “Are barium enemas even given anymore?” She answered, “Yes they are given on occasion and there are patients who ask for them instead of a colonoscopy or sometimes in adjunct with a colonoscopy when there is intestinal pain."

I was surprised that some patients ASK for a barium enema!

At my age they quite often check the large bowel for polyps.

A condition characterized by the presence of numerous internal polyps, especially a hereditary disease ( familial adenomatous polyposis ) which affects the colon and in which the polyps may become malignant.

Personally I'm glad they are rarely performed anymore. If you're unable to fully evacuate it can cause major issues.

2 years ago I had a contrasting die x-ray. All liquid and evacuates quickly.

@easy123

The Barium used in Barium enemas is not ‘radioactive’. It is a stable element.

It is radio opaque… which means it blocks x-rays…. a very big difference.

Thanks very much for the clarification @Sean .

I'm told they are harder to deal with than colonoscopies.

I've had a couple of colonoscopies without sedation and they were no big deal. In one there was some polyp removal, which I frankly dreaded, but, in truth, I didn't feel a thing and it was over before I realized it had started.

The prep for either procedure is pretty much the same… fasting, powerful laxatives, a lot of Miralax and hours of pooing soup … so there's really no difference.

As to a barium enema, there are three things that come to mind:

The embarrassment factor- It is a lot more embarrassing to have the barium nozzle put up you butt and inflated than be given 3000ml of thick heavy solution and then see the bag lowered, you poo it out back into the bag, then be refilled, or better inflated, with air, while the radiologist and nurse are doing it to you. Many people don't much like getting an enema with an audience of strangers.

The pain factor with a colonoscopy, the predominant feeling is of something big in your anus. It's not huge, but you can definitely feel it. Also, when the ‘scope' goes around the corners in you bowel it can be a bit ouchie. A good doctor will have the nurse press on the correct spot on you tummy and the ouchieness is brief and mild.

With a barium enema there is a lot of solution to go in and it can get crampy. Re-positioning on the table can help, but the volume is needed to see all the colon. When enough solution is in you and the bag is lowered, the relief is wonderful… until the air starts, when you feel like the Snoopy balloon at the Macy’s parade.

After either exam you fart a lot, but those after the barium can be wet and messy. There's no aftercare after a colonoscopy, but most people get a dose of laxative … sometimes mild, sometimes not … after a barium enema to clear out any residual barium.

The only other difference I can remember is the colonoscopy table is a lot less uncomfortable than for the barium enema.

I've had a couple of colonoscopies without sedation and they were no big deal. In one there was some polyp removal, which I frankly dreaded, but, in truth, I didn't feel a thing and it was over before I realized it had started.

The colon is not innervated to sense cutting/tearing, which is why you need to be careful with hard nozzles and toys.

@Moms_Egirl I was surprised that some patients ASK for a barium enema!

I’ve had many ”good enemas“ in the past 40 years that made me feel better as a result, but the barium enema was not one of them.

Although my mother underwent two barium enemas, one in the 1950s and the other in the 60s, and she told me it would be a breeze, it wasn’t. Not even close! Mine was in 1985 when I was 23. I was a relative enema newbie at the time, although the year before a nurse gave me a multi-enema cleanse when I was constipated from overdoing pain meds after being critically injured in an accident.

My barium enema experience was embarrassing and painful. I couldn’t imagine that anyone would be ASKING to go through that. It did, however, reveal a pesky area of inflammation and narrowing of my colon (between transverse and descending), whereas my status as an enema newbie became considerably elevated, complete with my own fountain syringe, a long, scary tube, and all the trimmings! (Lol)

From my experience with GI specialists (two colonoscopies since and another recommended next year), they prefer the colonoscopy, particularly for over-50ish, because they can get a better look at any polyps and remove them for evaluation in one (expensive!) procedure. For younger patients, for example in their 20s like I was, I sense that some docs may still recommend the barium enema if they are looking for sources of pain and inflammation. Just a thought.

So, this is going to date me….but I used to give barium contrast enemas….or rather get patients prepped for them. If I had to pick….I'll take a colonoscopy all day. The BEs were tough. The prep was brutal back then…..laxatives and soap suds enemas until clear. The exam was often given using a balloon catheter as some, mostly elderly, patients would have a hard time retaining the barium and cleaning up the XRay table was not my favorite pastime.

The nice radiologists would introduce a minimal amount of barium and allow it to coat the colon…..but the less experienced or miserable radiologists would fill these poor folks up. When you are elderly and your guts motility has slowed…..barium would set up like concrete in these folks. Quite miserable…..which then lent itself to more enemas to clean it out.

If you want to pick……go colonoscopy! Unless you like the challenge and find the enema arousing.

In the last 15 years I've had 2 colonoscopies, w/o sedation. I was supposed to have another a couple of years ago, but then came the COVID scourge. In a recent discussion with my doctor I asked about another and was told as the person gets older, they may decide to do a Barium Enema. Stay tuned.

In a recent discussion with my doctor I asked about another and was told as the person gets older, they may decide to do a Barium Enema. Stay tuned.

Geez!!! I hope that isn't true. A couple of articles I found seem to indicate colonoscopies are more favorable, even in the elderly. If they do a BE, you have to do all the prep for it, then if they find something, you have to do all the prep again for a colonoscopy where they can remove the polyp or lesion. I'd prefer the one-stop shopping!!

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/8541370/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/2742225/

@rigel

Yes, you are right. But I'd be inclined to do the BE as I've never had one.

I have had 5 barium enemas. The first occured when I was 15 and my first gastroeneterologist was investigating my chronic constipation. That would have been in the mid 1960s, when barium enemas were still very much the go-to tool for examining the colon. That one was quite memorable for several reasons. The last was about 20 years ago and ordered by a colon and rectal surgeon. He was evaluating me for a subtotal colectomy to treat colonic inertia. Even then, the technologist told me that they did very few barium enemas. The surgeon told me the barium enema would tell him more about which segments of my colon were affected by the colonic inertia. It turned out that my ascending and transverse colon is very dilated and did not contract when filled with the contrast media. My descending colon was almost fully contracted in response to the enema. Those findings figured into the surgeon's treatment plan. I am guessing that he could not have gotten that information without using the BE. My current colon and rectal surgeon, who is younger, has never mentioned a barium enema as part of a pre-surgical evaluation. And, yes, I still have all of my colon. I opted not to do the surgery. It is a pain to have to take laxatives and enemas to poop, but the surgery is major and not without risks of complications.

My wife had one in the early 2000’s. She was hospitalized with severe stomach pain, and they were trying to diagnose what was wrong with her. Turns out it was Appendicitis, and thankfully she was okay. Miserable experience for her though.

I'm kind of sorry I missed ever having a Barium Enema (I'm not sorry I was never sick enough to need one though!). The notion of the prep, especially if done by an inpatient nursing staff, and then other strange nurses and techs performing the procedure is kind of exciting. For an added challenge/misery, I'd want the Clysodrast (Bisacodyl tannex) protocol.