Does >200 mg of Propofol Sedation Allow Healthy Individuals to Undergo a Colonoscopy and Drive Themselves Home?

Colonoscopy is a common gastrointestinal endoscopic procedure for which sedation is frequently used. We investigated whether sedation with >200 mg propofol allows healthy individuals to undergo colonoscopy and drive themselves home.

This was a prospective study in which healthy subjects (20 to 96 y) who underwent screening, surveillance, or diagnostic colonoscopy with propofol sedation between January 2024 and December 2024, and were allowed to drive themselves home, were enrolled. A nurse using an age-adjusted standard protocol administered the propofol as a bolus injection. Among the enrolled subjects, 300 subjects with >200 mg of propofol sedation received questionnaires asking about the primary outcome measure (the occurrence of adverse events within 24 hr postcolonoscopy) and secondary outcome measures (their overall satisfaction and clinical outcomes).

All 3152 subjects successfully completed their colonoscopy. The mean propofol dose used for colonoscopy was 203 mg (range: 80 to 480 mg), and 1261 (40%) of the subjects received >200 mg propofol. The colorectal polyp removal was successful in 1293 (41%) of subjects. The only adverse event was a transient need for supplemental oxygen, required in 21 subjects (0.7%) during the colonoscopy. The questionnaires revealed that 219 (73%) of the 300 questionnaire respondents were able to drive home or to their office safely 2 hours postcolonoscopy. All 300 subjects had no accidents within 24 hours of their colonoscopy. Most (99%) were willing to have the same procedure again.

Propofol sedation at doses >200 mg allowed healthy individuals to undergo a colonoscopy and drive themselves home safely 2 hours later.