Bacteremia in children following upper gastrointestinal endoscopy or colonoscopy.

Fifty children undergoing upper gastrointestinal endoscopy and 25 undergoing colonoscopy were studied prospectively with aerobic and anaerobic blood cultures for the development of bacteremia. Twenty-six of the endoscopies and all the colonoscopies were done under general anesthesia. Cultures were obtained before, at 5 min, and at 30 min after the procedure. Only a single positive blood culture was obtained in an upper endoscopy patient. All cultures from the colonoscopy patients were negative. Biopsy or polypectomy were not important variables in the development of bacteremia. It is concluded that the risk of bacteremia in children following upper endoscopy or colonoscopy is minimal and should not be considered a contraindication to their performance.