Flexi Sigmoidoscopy

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A flexible sigmoidoscopy is an examination of the left half of your large bowel (otherwise known as the large intestine or the colon).

This examination is carried out using a piece of equipment called a flexible sigmoidoscope, or its longer version, the colonoscope. This is essentially a long, thin, bendy tube with a light and a camera at one end. The camera transmits pictures of the inside of your body straight onto a telly screen for our specialist to have a good look at.

During the investigation, our specialist might need to take some small tissue samples, known as biopsies, from the lining of your large bowel for further analysis. Rest assured, this is completely painless. We may also take photographs for your medical records.

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There are a few reasons why your doctor might recommend this test, and they’ll go through this with you.

Common reasons include:

Noticing a change in your usual bowel habits, such as constipation or diarrhoea.
Seeing blood coming from your bottom.
Needing a check-up for an existing bowel condition, like inflammatory bowel disease or colonic polyps.

The procedure usually takes around 10 minutes, but this can vary depending on how twisty your bowel is and if we need to do anything extra such as polyp removal.

Flexible sigmoidoscopy is a quick test, and most people are perfectly comfortable without any sedation or painkillers. If you’re feeling particularly worried about it, our friendly hospital team are on hand and they’ll be happy to help answer any questions you may have.

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While you are preparing for your flexible sigmoidoscopy here at Clarity, it’s a good idea to keep to a healthy diet, cut back on alcohol, and think about giving up smoking if you currently smoke.

Try and avoid being too constipated by using laxatives regularly if you suffer with constipation. This will also really help make sure your bowel is properly emptied out when you take the bowel prep before your appointment.

Avoid foods that make your bowel symptoms worse.

It is extremely important that the left side of your bowel is completely empty before a flexible sigmoidoscopy to allow adequate inspection of the lining of your colon.

Once your sigmoidoscopy is booked in, you will receive detailed instructions on how to prepare for you appointment. Usually, this involves taking a bowel-cleansing laxative at home the day before your procedure. Sometimes, all that’s needed is an enema on the day of the test; we’ll let you know if that’s the case.

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