Examination of Core Clinical Symptoms of Postoperative Fatigue Syndrome Following Colonoscopy With Sedation.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to systematically encapsulate the array of discomfort symptoms ensuing from sedative-administered colonoscopy, with the overarching objective of formulating screening criteria conducive to the identification of the core clinical symptoms characterizing postoperative fatigue syndrome (POFS).

Design: A single-center descriptive study.

Methods: We selected patients who had undergone a sedative-administered colonoscopy and conducted a telephone follow-up to examine the occurrence of postoperative discomfort symptoms.The Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events (Version 5.0) was used to determine the discomfort symptoms and preliminarily assess the severity by comparing the collected patient feedback information. Basic patient information was collected at the anesthesia clinic or at the endoscopy center. The initial telephone follow-ups were conducted 24 hours after the examination.

Findings: The analysis involved 542 patients who successfully completed the investigation, yielding a compilation of 19 postoperative discomfort symptoms, encompassing fatigue, lethargy, dizziness, and others. Following a meticulous screening process, the identified core clinical symptoms of POFS were narrowed down to fatigue, lethargy, dizziness, and headache.

Conclusions: The diagnostic criteria for POFS should encompass the presence of fatigue, lethargy, dizziness, and headache, as these symptoms constitute the core clinical manifestations.