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Center For Health and Cancer Prevention

Center for Health and Cancer Prevention

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    • Dr. Keith Berger
    • Dr. Beth Jaklic
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Preparing

How To Prepare for your Colonoscopy or Endoscopy?

Seven days Before Your Exam

You must refrain from taking any type of aspirin product. We’ll provide a detailed list of products to avoid. If you regularly take supplements containing iron, you must stop taking them as well.

Have plenty of liquids on hand to drink before the exam. You can have Gatorade, clear fruit juice (no citrus or acidic brands), coffee or tea without milk, and Popsicles if they contain no cream or frozen fruit. We will also prescribe a special drink mix (such as GoLytely or NuLytely, or Miralax) designed to help eliminate fecal matter from your intestines, so make sure you get the prescription filled and follow the instructions.

One Day Before Your Exam

This is very important: you cannot eat any solid foods the day before and the day of your exam! We understand how frustrating that is, but it’s important that you are cleansed inside so we can properly perform the colonoscopy. Stick only with the liquids mentioned above – but don’t drink anything red or purple. You can even have a cup of bullion for lunch or dinner if you wish. Also, the morning is a good time to prepare your prescription cleansing drink to have in the evening. Keep it chilled in the refrigerator – our patients say it tastes better when it’s cold.

  • At 4:00 pm take 4 Dulcolax tablets followed by 2-3 glasses of clear liquid.
  • At 4:30 pm mix 4 ounces of Miralax in 32 ounces of Gatorade and drink.
  • At 8:00 pm mix another 4 ounces of Miralax with 32 ounces of Gatorade and drink.

The Day of Your Exam

You should not have been eating food the day before, and five hours before you report to the clinic you need stop the liquids as well. Don’t be tempted to take a glass of water – your colon needs to be empty. Refrain from any medications, and bring an extra set of clothes just in case of an accident.

Once you arrive at our offices, we will help you through every step of the colonoscopy, and after it is finished you will rest until we determine when you are able to leave.

If you have any questions about what to do before your exam, please call us today at 757-412-4919.

Prescription History

Before you undergo a colonoscopy, endoscopy or any type of cancer screening, please inform us of your entire prescription medication history – we need to know about all medicines, if any, that you are presently taking. Depending on the medication, you may need to refrain from taking some of them before the test. Especially if you take insulin or blood thinners, we need to know. We will coordinate with other doctors about dosage adjustments if necessary.

Make plans, too, to arrange for a friend or relative to take you to and from our clinic. You will not be able to drive after the exam, and it’s best to have somebody stay the night with you if you live alone.

Try watching this video on www.youtube.com,

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Do you have a question? Ask the Doctors today! Dr. Berger and Dr. Jaklic’s staff will answer you personally!

  • Please note: we provide the opportunity to ask questions as a service and for informational purposes only. It is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice and should not be relied upon as such. If you have a concern about your health, we strongly recommend you schedule an appointment to see us. If you have a medical emergency, please go to the nearest emergency medical facility or dial 911.

Thank you so much for the kind and tender treatment I received on my recent visit. . . I hope 10 years from now I’ll remember how easy this was! You are a top notch group of people and I appreciate each one of you – from the front desk to everyone in the back! I know the Lord sent me to the right place!

Donna J.

PLEASE tell Dr. Berger how much I appreciated his efficiency and painless procedure.  And tell his IV nurse that that was the most painless IV that I ever had.  I was so impressed with all of you.

Buck H., M.D.

A sincere thanks to all of you for being so nice when I had my upper endoscopy. Words can’t express my appreciation to Dr. Berger for his understanding and patience. . .    I delayed having this procedure for a long time, knowing this would be a problem – maybe insurmountable.  I was so embarrassed at my difficulty, but you . . .solved the problem. You’re terrific and I am grateful.

Sylvia B.

A few weeks ago I visited your office for a long overdue ‘routine’ colonoscopy.  I was surprised how painless and unembarrassing it was.  To my surprise, Dr. Berger told me he found a large polyp that he was able to remove.  Yikes!  Thank God everything turned out okay, but I am extremely grateful to you and your fantastic team (thanks Linda!) for helping me through this!  You are all wonderful!

June M.

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Center for Health and Cancer Prevention

1301 First Colonial Road, Suite 201, Virginia Beach, VA 23454 · Phone: (757) 412-4919 · Fax: (757) 412-4898

Colon Cancer Screenings, Colonoscopy, GI consultation and evaluation, covering the Hampton Roads, VA cities of: Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Norfolk, Suffolk, Portsmouth, Hampton, Newport News, Yorktown, Poquoson and Williamsburg, Virginia.

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