What is a flexible sigmoidoscopy?

Are there any alternatives?

A colonoscopy is similar to a flexible sigmoidoscopy but the endoscopist looks all the way round your large bowel during a colonoscopy and it has slightly higher risks.

Other options include a CT colonography. If your doctor finds the cause of your symptoms, you may still need a flexible sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy to treat it or perform biopsies.

What will happen if I decide not to have the procedure or the procedure is delayed?

Your healthcare team may not be able to confirm what is causing your symptoms, and they may get worse.

What does the procedure involve?

A flexible sigmoidoscopy usually takes 15 to 20 minutes.

Your endoscopist will put a gloved and lubricated finger into your back passage to check for any problems. They will then place a flexible endoscope into your back passage.

The endoscopist will be able to look for what is causing your symptoms. They may also be able to remove polyps.

Biopsies are taken using tiny forceps that are passed through the endoscope.

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What complications can happen?

The healthcare team are trained to reduce the risk of complications.

Any risk rates given are taken from studies of people who have had this procedure. Your healthcare team may be able to tell you if the risk of a complication is higher or lower for you.

Possible complications of this procedure are shown below from most to least likely to happen. Some can be serious.

Complications of a flexible sigmoidoscopy

• Incomplete procedure caused by a technical difficulty, blockage in your large bowel, complications during the procedure, poor view of your large bowel or discomfort.
• Breathing difficulties or heart irregularities, as a result of reacting to the sedative or your bowel being stretched.
• Allergic reaction to the equipment or medication.
• Infection.
• Missed diagnosis. There is a small chance that large polyps or other problems may be missed during the procedure.
• Heavy bleeding if a polyp is removed. Sometimes bleeding can happen up to 2 weeks after the procedure.
• Making a hole in your large bowel. The risk is higher if a polyp is removed, especially if it is a large polyp. This is a serious complication.
• Bleeding from a biopsy site or from minor damage caused by the endoscope.
• Rarely, a heart attack or stroke can happen if you have serious medical problems.
• Death. This is rare.

What happens after the procedure?

If you were not given a sedative, you should be able to go home after a member of the healthcare team has spoken to you and decided you are ready. If you were given a sedative, you will usually recover in about an hour, but this depends on how much sedative you were given.

The healthcare team will tell you the results of the procedure and talk to you about any treatment or follow-up care you may need.

You should be able to return to work the next day unless you are told otherwise.

Summary

A flexible sigmoidoscopy is usually a safe and effective way of finding out if there is a problem with the lower part of your large bowel.

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