Surprise sigmoidoscopy!

Today I went to see a colo-rectal specialist.

He had me take off my pants and shorts and lie on my side for what I assumed was going to be a DRE.

Well, he *did* do a DRE. But then he said, "now we're going to use an instrument to look inside you"..

And with only that as a warning, he proceeded to do a sigmoidoscopy.

Now this was the first time I've had one, but I've read there is supposed to be liquid diet the day before and preparations such as laxatives and enemas to cleanse the colon before the exam.

There was none of that. He just did it on the spur of the moment. I felt pretty unprepared and caught off guard for it. This kind of surprise is arousing when it happens to people in stories, but not so much in real life. It was only mildly uncomfortable.

He found nothing to remark about, but did suggest a colonoscopy on another date.

The only bright spot of the whole business was the presence of a younger female intern or something who never touched me but just watched the procedure and had things explained to her. I hope she comes back for the colonoscopy.

(You can believe that I am going to write some fiction based on this though)

I'm dying to hear it. The mor details the better.

Without cleansing is not usual

I'm curious, what symptoms did you have that caused the doctor to do the sigmoid?

UPDATE: I finally had the colonoscopy. It was entirely non-erotic for me, being conducted by a man and two women, neither of which I found particularly attractive.

I was, I will admit, kind of hoping that they would give me an enema as a just-in-case measure after the whole bowel irrigation. They did not. They basically said that if it had turned out that the irrigation had not "worked", they would have sent me away with no colonoscopy.

Also, whatever drug they gave me seemed to limit my ability to get erections and have orgasms even when attempting to masturbate many hours later.

On the other hand, my colon is healthy, which I guess is all that actually matters.

Well, I did experience one situation that I've often put characters into in stories and fantasies: at one point while waiting, I had to get up, stand at the nurses' counter, and use the phone while wearing a gown that did not tie in the back.

I never heard of doing a scope without at least some minimal prep. (at least an enema administered before the exam.)

There are many instances where it is preferable to conduct an examination without. Of course the objective is to find the rectum and sigmoid colon clean enough to examine but with many conditions such as ulcerative colitis it is important to view the mucosa in as normal a state as possible without any outside source of irritation. If there is no reason for an exam other than preventive screening, having the colon as clean as possible is always the best. However examination without any prep is common and has a purpose. The doctor may ask you to skip dinner the night before and request you not use any form of prep prior to a sigmoidoscopy in the case of a suspected inflammatory condition.

A sigmoid scope or procto scope goes only in a short distance like a foot or so and its a rigid metal or plastic tube. It evaluates the very lower bowel. If the person has had a BM that day, there is usually nothing that gets in the way of the exam and is usually done for bleeding to look at hemorrhoids and if a tumor is low in the rectum that could be visualized. For a full colon exam, insist on the colonoscopy as the prep has to be the same as for a flex sigmoid exam and it evaluates the entire colon. You need to be good and cleaned out but I believe most MD's have not done to go lytely prep as they would never drink that much liquid. Have had 2 procedures and took fleets and mag citrate and when they asked did I do the prep, said yes and was told the prep was excellent upon completion of the exam.

For a full colon exam, insist on the colonoscopy as the prep has to be the same as for a flex sigmoid exam and it evaluates the entire colon.

I presume you are suggesting insisting on a colonoscopy if the doctor recommends a flexible sigmoidoscopy? Possibly if you are 50 or over, or have a family history of colon cancer, but otherwise there is no good reason if the doctor has not suggested it. Most carcinomas, 70% or more by some studies, occur in the descending colon within reach of a flexible sigmoidoscope. Colonoscopy normally involves conscious sedation which carries an added risk with an associated recovery time, whereas a patient can leave immediately after a flexible sigmoidoscopy and resume normal activities. Colonoscopy when indicated is the gold standard however flex sigmoidoscopy is a very effective diagnostic tool for many diseases.

Thanks for update DrButtz, good to hear all is in order.

I had it done once , & then colonoscopy twice, not a big deal . I just don't like all the prep before the exam

Who do it without cleansing?

Although it is desirable to have a clean colon often spur of the moment sigs are done when patients have rectal bleeding, inflammatory bowel disease or other conditions. I always do them spur of the moment in my ER practice because nobody makes an appointment to see me.

In three weeks I am going to do a colonoscopy without the sedation (this will be the fourth). It is nice to be poked and get up and go about your business as normal. In my view we over do the drugs in this country..........I am told in Europe it is not offered unless you ask for it. For me the procedure is not at all painful.

In three weeks I am going to do a colonoscopy without the sedation (this will be the fourth). It is nice to be poked and get up and go about your business as normal. In my view we over do the drugs in this country..........I am told in Europe it is not offered unless you ask for it. For me the procedure is not at all painful.

Me, too. I've had 4, three with no drugs. Uncomfortable, yes but completely tolerable.

I'm a great believer in better living through chemistry so give them to me for a colonoscopy. I don't care when getting sig'd.

The problem, as I've discussed before, is that I've had permanent memory issues apparently from Versed. There are about 10% of the people why get this poison who experience permanent issues, from small memory gaps to permanent disability, PTSD and other horrific effects.The ability to remember where to have breakfast 15 minutes after the scope is done is a wonderful thing.

Jds I believe in the positive benefits of a good memory too. I don't think any drugs screwed up my memory, but who knows for sure? Midazolam is not my favorite drug either. I had it for my colonoscopy and was way stupid for a few hours. I'm glad you know better than to get it.

If I ever need short term anesthesia, like for an upper GI (my gag reflex is awful), it's propofol for me. Yes, I know I'd need a hospital and anesthesiologist.

I once had a doctor explain to me that sometimes it is preferable for the patient not to do a prep enema before a sigmoidoscopy, even though at other times it is done. Without the prep gives them a different perspective on what's doing up there.

I’ve had both a sigmoidoscopy and a colonoscopy. The sigmoidoscopy examines only the very lower end of the colon so while it is unpleasant neither a prep nor anesthesia are necessary. For my colonoscopy a full day’s prep (ie in the bathroom crapping your brains out) and general anesthesia were required.