Halting Tirzepatide Ahead of Colonoscopy and Endoscopy

Romulusguy

Romulusguy

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My doctor told me to quit my Tirz 2 weeks prior to my colonoscopy and endoscopy. Once that point arrives, I will have been using Tirz for 5 months altogether. What should I anticipate "feeling" after I halt the injections, and when will that happen? Will I start eating everything in sight within a day, or will cravings creep in gradually after a week? I am simply wondering what to expect across that 2 week stretch before I resume my injections once the procedures are done.
 
I'd argue the point with them. That guidance has just been updated by the Americans Association of Anesthesiologists, and holding the dose before a procedure is no longer what they recommend.
 
When it comes to a colonoscopy, the lower end has to be completely clear, if you will. GLP medications reduce the speed of your digestive system, at times quite noticeably. So the logic tracks. I stopped for 2 weeks ahead of my c’scope. Honestly, right around when hunger pangs kicked in, that was when the unpleasant prep arrived. I shed a huge amount of weight through that! Right after, I had an enormous, tasty, indulgent meal, then went back on the injections.

Last autumn I underwent 2 procedures (vein phlebectomy plus a double hernia repair), and the directions I received didn’t match—hold tirz for 1 week, hold tirz for 2 weeks. I administered my weekly injection 8 days prior to the procedure and restarted the following day. Strictly speaking, I was off it for a week, correct??? 😂. Nothing bad happened.
 
latviantower said:

When it comes to a colonoscopy, the lower end has to be completely clear, if you will. GLP medications reduce the speed of your digestive system, at times quite noticeably. So the logic tracks. I stopped for 2 weeks ahead of my c’scope. Honestly, right around when hunger pangs kicked in, that was when the unpleasant prep arrived. I shed a huge amount of weight through that! Right after, I had an enormous, tasty, indulgent meal, then went back on the injections.

Last autumn I underwent 2 procedures (vein phlebectomy plus a double hernia repair), and the directions I received didn’t match—hold tirz for 1 week, hold tirz for 2 weeks. I administered my weekly injection 8 days prior to the procedure and restarted the following day. Strictly speaking, I was off it for a week, correct??? 😂. Nothing bad happened.
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Yikes, 3 years back I went through a double hernia repair. The staff described it as a "minor" operation and said I'd be discharged that same day. Boy, was that a load of nonsense! My testicles ended up looking worse than after my vasectomy, the pain was brutal, recovery dragged on for over 6 months, and even now my scars still itch 😛
 
If your prep isn't thorough, they'll proceed with whatever they can manage.

The concern about aspiration doesn't call for weeks of washout.

I dose Reta in split amounts every 3.5 days, and constipation hasn't been a problem. If I were scheduled for the lower scope, I'd pause for about a week, timing it so the procedure falls on a dropped soap day. For the 2 days prior, I'd stick to mostly clear, easily digestible items, then go full clear the day before.

Back in Feb, I had an EGD, and the only instruction was to be before my next dose.
 
Last year I ended up having 2 procedures — a colonoscopy and a gastroscopy. The upper scope was done to investigate a drop in my iron levels (caused by bleeding from low dose aspirin), while the lower one was for ulcerative colitis monitoring. Both colonoscopies came back with poor prep, and on top of that there was still food/fluid sitting in my stomach. Those 2 issues trace back to GLPs. After going through the prep twice, I reached my limit and figured that if a small patch of dysplasia got missed somewhere, so be it — I was not going to do a third round. Because of the delayed gastric emptying, getting down the 3 litres of prep solution took me 7 hours.

The primary concern behind telling people to pause these drugs is keeping the stomach empty, so that after sedation there is no risk of stomach contents ending up in the lungs. The official stance is that this is probably unnecessary, but it is likely smarter to just do what the person performing the procedure asks, so they stay comfortable. The last thing you want is to complete the prep and then be turned away because you had not stopped the GLP as instructed.

Since slower GI motility can also lead to a poor prep, a more aggressive prep regimen may be worth considering, and sticking to the dietary rules is wise — perhaps even moving to liquids only 24 hours sooner than required. A bad prep simply means some stool remains in the colon, so not everything can be seen clearly.

At 2 weeks after stopping, tirz blood levels are still around 25%, so a 2 week pause does not fully resolve the issue.
 
lessthanhalf said:

Last year I ended up having 2 procedures — a colonoscopy and a gastroscopy. The upper scope was done to investigate a drop in my iron levels (caused by bleeding from low dose aspirin), while the lower one was for ulcerative colitis monitoring. Both colonoscopies came back with poor prep, and on top of that there was still food/fluid sitting in my stomach. Those 2 issues trace back to GLPs. After going through the prep twice, I reached my limit and figured that if a small patch of dysplasia got missed somewhere, so be it — I was not going to do a third round. Because of the delayed gastric emptying, getting down the 3 litres of prep solution took me 7 hours.

The primary concern behind telling people to pause these drugs is keeping the stomach empty, so that after sedation there is no risk of stomach contents ending up in the lungs. The official stance is that this is probably unnecessary, but it is likely smarter to just do what the person performing the procedure asks, so they stay comfortable. The last thing you want is to complete the prep and then be turned away because you had not stopped the GLP as instructed.

Since slower GI motility can also lead to a poor prep, a more aggressive prep regimen may be worth considering, and sticking to the dietary rules is wise — perhaps even moving to liquids only 24 hours sooner than required. A bad prep simply means some stool remains in the colon, so not everything can be seen clearly.

At 2 weeks after stopping, tirz blood levels are still around 25%, so a 2 week pause does not fully resolve the issue.
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Yes, I've been through a colonoscopy once before. That was 2 years back, and at the time I wasn't taking Tirz or any other medication. Even though I followed every prep instruction exactly, the procedure couldn't be finished. From the section they did manage to see, a HUGE polyp was taken out — it measured in the MM range! Luckily, it was non cancerous, but it made me determined to schedule another colonoscopy 🙂

Now I have a different doctor. After I told them what happened last time, they provided me with sample medication that I need to take 1 week before the procedure, so my gastric emptying begins VERY early. That week is going to be tough, but a bit of discomfort can genuinely save my LIFE, so....I'll get through it.
 
My final injection was 16 days before the procedure, since I quit 2 weeks ahead of time. After that, I held off for 1 more week before resuming. Around day 7, the food noise came back, though it felt shorter than before. My portions grew a bit bigger, yet thanks to the routines and resolve I'd developed, I still dropped 2 pounds across those 3 weeks. (I'm not including any weight lost from the colonoscopy prep itself—I never stepped on the scale afterward.)
 
I went through the same thing roughly 3 weeks back. It's really important to get your prep done right and completely, because insurance won't pay for a second attempt if it has to be repeated (that was the situation for someone in my family, anyway). The advice I got was to quit GLPs 1 week ahead, and that was enough. Around day 7 to 10 you'll likely notice extra hunger, though the prep itself will wipe out your appetite 🙂sick:🤮). After it's over, things return to how they were, and with any luck your results come back clean. Best of luck!
 
My approach was this: I only halted my medication 1 week (or possibly 5 days?) ahead of the procedure, but then I did a fast lasting 3 1/2 days prior to it, purely to ensure complete clearance.

Having put it off for years with dread, the entire thing turned out to be far simpler and more agreeable than I had imagined. 9/10 would recommend.

Everything came back clear, and now I have another 10 years to wait.
 
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