Sigmoidoscopy
sigmoidoscopy · flexible sigmoidoscopy · proctoscopy · rectoscopy
The doctor looks inside your rectum and the lower part of your large bowel with a tube that has a camera or light. A small tissue sample can be taken.
For blood in the stool, pain or itching around the anus, changes in bowel habits, before hemorrhoid treatment, or for screening.
⏱ Duration: the procedure itself usually takes 10 to 20 minutes; the report right away, tissue results in 5 to 10 days
Be sure to tell your doctor
How to prepare
- Bowel prep. Usually an enema the evening before and in the morning, or a small enema. The clinic will give you the plan.
- Food. The day before, a light dinner with no vegetables, fruit, or beans. In the morning, skip breakfast or have a light one. Check with the clinic.
- Medicines. Do not stop them on your own. Tell your doctor. They will decide.
What to bring
- Your referral
- Past colonoscopy reports
- A list of your medicines
How it goes
- You undress below the waist or put on disposable shorts
- You lie on your left side with your knees to your chest
- First, the doctor checks the anus with a finger
- Then a lubricated tube is inserted, and a little air is added
- The doctor looks at the bowel walls on a monitor
- If needed, a small tissue sample is taken. This does not hurt
What you'll feel
- Fullness and an urge to go to the toilet. This is from the air
- Unpleasant, but usually bearable
- If it hurts, tell the doctor
Afterwards
- You will pass gas over the next hour
- You can eat right away
- If a sample was taken, there may be a little blood in your stool for 1 to 2 days
Contact a doctor straight away if
- Severe belly pain, a hard belly, or a fever: call emergency services
- Bleeding from the bottom with clots, or bleeding that will not stop: call emergency services
Common questions
How is this different from a colonoscopy?
Sigmoidoscopy looks only at the lower part of the bowel, and the prep is simpler. A colonoscopy looks at the whole large bowel.
Can I be asleep for it?
It is usually done without sedation, since it is short. Ask the clinic.