Please note that for any urgent or life-threatening conditions, we always recommend that you should call 999 or go to your nearest emergency department immediately. We are usually able to provide face to face or remote appointments with our GP’s within 24 hours. Please contact 01442 331 900 to book an appointment.
Diagnostic examination of the rectum and lower part of the large intestine (colon/bowel)
A flexible sigmoidoscopy is a procedure that involves the examination of the rectum and lower part of the large intestine (colon/bowel). A narrow, flexible, telescopic camera, known as a sigmoidoscope, is passed through the anus into the colon.
A flexible sigmoidoscopy is often advised with significant changes in bowel habits or when experiencing any of the following symptoms:
A flexible sigmoidoscopy can also be used to investigate new and/or monitor existing bowel conditions such as:
A flexible sigmoidoscopy can also be used to treat conditions such as volvulus, a condition in which a loop of intestine becomes twisted and causes an obstruction of the bowel.
Prior to the procedure you will be asked to take some laxatives or have an enema to clean the bowel. On the day of the procedure, you will be asked to lie on your left side with your knees tucked up to your chest. The consultant will pass the sigmoidoscope carefully through your anus and up into the first part of the colon (bowel).
The consultant will examine the images from the camera as it moves through your body. In order for the consultant to get a clear picture of the colon, a small amount of air may be gently pumped into the bowels through the sigmoidoscope. This may cause mild abdominal cramping at the time, but the gas will pass naturally during the following 24 hours or so.
During the sigmoidoscopy, tissue samples and/or polyps (growths on the bowel walls) can be removed for lab testing (biopsies). This will be painless but may result in some mild pain and bleeding post operatively. These symptoms should ease within a day or two.
The procedure will take approximately 20 minutes.
Guide price: £1,100
**Guide prices may vary following consultation
| What’s included? | Hospital Only Fixed Price Package |
| Consultant fees | X |
| Anaesthetist fees | X |
| Initial consultation | X |
| Standard pre-admission assessments | ✓ |
| Accommodation | ✓ |
| Meals | ✓ |
| Nursing | ✓ |
| Theatre charges | ✓ |
| Histology | ✓ |
| Drugs and dressings | ✓ |
| Standard prosthesis charges | ✓ |
| Take-home medications | ✓ |
| Post-op consultation | X |
Expected length of stay: Day case procedure
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