Prevalence of colorectal neoplasia 10 or more years after a negative screening colonoscopy

Screening colonoscopy is recommended to be repeated in 10-year intervals. A cross-sectional study in Germany investigated the prevalence of advanced colorectal neoplasia (ADN) at least 10 years after a negative screening colonoscopy in 120,298 participants aged 65 years or older at the repeated colonoscopy. Prevalence of ADN was 3.6% among women and 5.2% among men 10 years after the index colonoscopy, and gradually increased to 4.9% among women and 6.6% among men 14 years or longer after the index colonoscopy. The prevalence of ADN at repeated colonoscopies 10 or more years after a negative colonoscopy was consistently lower among women compared with men and among younger compared with older individuals, and much lower than among all screening colonoscopies. The authors conclude that extension of the currently recommended 10-year screening intervals may be warranted, especially for females and younger individuals without gastrointestinal symptoms.