PCE for the small intestine or the large (colon)??
No reason NOT to do the scope and PCE same day IF the scope is done first and first thing in the morning and then the PCE shortly after but when you are DEFINITELY clear of any sedation used (propofol would be the better choice under these circumstances).
The PCE has to be swallowed early enough in the day for an abdominal xray to be taken 26 hours after ingesting the PCE to determine if it has passed or not.
Or you can do an extra day of clear liquid diet and do the scope one day and the PCE the next. You can eat w/in 2 hours or so of swallowing the PCE.
Those who've run into problems w/not passing the PCE are those who had a stricture somewhere w/in their small intestine that in most cases should have been at least suspected and in those cases where it is reasonable to assume there most likely is a stricture there is a dissolvable pill, the Agile Patency Capsule, that should be ordered first.
You follow the same procedure w/the APC as the PCE except NPO instead of a bowel prep, swallow the APC one day, abdominal xray 26 hours later, if APC shows up on xray you are NOT a candidate for the PCE. Meanwhile the APC is guaranteed to dissolve w/in 2-4 days. The APC is the exact same size as the PCE so it is a good safe "trial run". IF the APC isn't there on xray then it has passed thru and it is safe to do the PCE.
My gastro and I were really interested in "doing" the PCE but I had a resection years ago leading to what is now a high grade partial obstruction. We had no way of knowing if the PCE would pass thru.
Since I already had a recommendation that I have that area resected and wouldn't agree to it since I had no disease activity to speak of my gastro would have been quite comfortable w/the PCE not passing and it forcing the recommended resection.
I, of course, was NOT so interested in that occurring. So, much as I wanted to SEE what was going on in my small intestine, new disease activity or "just" the partial obstruction causing the problems, I would NOT agree to the PCE until - finally - the APC was FDA approved and available to us.
Hallelujah. We couldn't get the APC scheduled fast enough to satisfy either one of us!
Unfortunately, 26 hours later it hadn't passed. *sigh* There is was sitting in the left lower quadrant. *sigh* 72 hours later it did make its appearance in the strainer.
So, no PCE for me and no good look at my small intestine like I had hoped. *sigh* and *sniffle*