Colonic polyps in an unselected population: prevalence, characteristics, and associations.

Objectives: To provide a proctosigmoidoscopic review of a very large set of unselected control subjects, providing an unbiased view of colonic polyps in the general population. Methods: Sigmoidoscopic data from 406 sequentially recruited subjects were analyzed. Participation rates were over 85%, and subjects were thus free of the usual selection bias. Results: Thirty-eight percent of screened individuals were found to have distal colonic polyps. Adenomas were found in 12%, and hyperplastic polyps were found in 30% of screened individuals. Adenomas were more prevalent in males and in older individuals. Hyperplastic prevalence did not differ significantly by gender or age