Abstract:Objective To compare the safety and clinical value of warm-water infusion or carbon dioxide (CO2) insufflation in difficult colonoscopy.Methods A collection of 150 patients from May 2021 to October 2023 who underwent unsedated and difficult colonoscopy were randomly divided into warm-water insufflation group (W group, n = 50), CO2 insufflation group (C group, n = 50) and air insufflation group (A group, n = 50). Record the cecal insertion time, the abdominal pain score during the examination and 20 min and 1 h after the examination, the success rate of intubation, the polyps detection rate, the willingness to re-examine and the need for assistance in the three groups. Some patients were randomly selected to record partial pressure of end-tidal carbon dioxide (PetCO2) of pre-examination, the ileocecal and 20 min after the examination to understand CO2 retention in the body.Results The cecal insertion time of group A was longer than that of group W and group C, and group W was shorter than group C. The abdominal pain score of group A was higher than that of group W and group C at each time point,and the abdominal pain score during the examination was lower in the group W compared with group C. The success rate of intubation and the willingness to re-examination in the group A were lower than those in group W and group C, The above differences were statistically significant (P < 0.05). However, there was no statistical difference between the the group W and group C in terms of success rate of intubation, willingness to re-examine, and abdominal pain score at 20 minutes and 1 hour after the examination (P > 0.05). In the group W, significantly fewer patients required abdominal compression compared with the other two groups, and the rate of position conversion was significantly lower than that in group A (P < 0.05).There was no significant difference in the detection rate of polyps among the three groups (P > 0.05). In addition, PetCO2 of group C was within the normal range at all time points, and there was no statistical difference compared with the group A (P > 0.05).Conclusion Compared with the air group, water or CO2 insufflation colonoscopy is safe and has a high success rate in difficult colonoscopy. It can reduce the patient’s abdominal discomfort, especially water insufflation colonoscopy is more suitable for promotion in primary hospitals.