Rectal or genital done first?

Standard of care, you do reglove between the genital and rectal

I've never had a doctor reglove. They always immediately proceed from the genital to the rectal exam without changing gloves at all. I'm not saying that's the standard of care, but in all of my life, that's my experience.

Wish my head turned like an owl so I could watch the prostate part of an exam----and that part is always last

I always do the genital exam first. I don't generally re glove unless there is evidence of anything which would infect the rectum.

I've never had a doctor reglove. They always immediately proceed from the genital to the rectal exam without changing gloves at all. I'm not saying that's the standard of care, but in all of my life, that's my experience.

It's the curriculum that I teach. Nobody is following doctors around after residency to see if they're still doing things the medical school way.

My doctor has always done my genital exam first. I think for him, that's just standard procedure

Always genital and then rectal (although nowadays it's often neither!)

Haven't had a rectal exam yet, but the genitals are always done last. Guess I'm not at that stage of life yet...

Based off every piece of literature I have read on the subject rectal is always last. Save the best for last? Or maybe that's worse. One persons trash is another persons treasure.

I always had the genital exam first, the doctor usually changes gloves before the rectal exam

BoyExam said

I always had the genital exam first, the doctor usually changes gloves before the rectal exam

Why would your doctor need to change his gloves after your genital and before your rectal exam????

For my medical it's the genital first and the rectal afterwards!

Hygienic matter!

Emm...i think i prefer rectal exam first... genital exam second

Shyboy^^^I hate to dash your hopes,but same as elsewhere genital done first followed by rectal....I noticed on your profile page Perth SA...Correct me if I'm wrong but there is NO Perth in SA......BTW--Perth is the capital of Western Aust....So which is it ??

Perth is a great place. I still cannot believe I took a swim in The Indian Ocean in Freemantle. The most isolated city on the planet.

BoyExam saidWhy would your doctor need to change his gloves after your genital and before your rectal exam????

The curriculum I teach includes the glove change. The rationale is not to introduce anything nasty like herpes from front to back. You may not agree, but that's the way it's taught.

Typically my PCP does the genital exam while I’m on my back on the exam table. However last time at the point where the genital exam would usually be next he explained that I was past the age that we had to worry about testicular cancer and had me roll onto my side for the DRE. I was relieved as I dislike the genital exam much more than the DRE. After the DRE, he had me roll onto my back. He changed gloves, moved the gown/drape and proceeded with a full genital exam. Typically he does not wear gloves for the genital exam when It is first. I have no idea why he did the rectal first this time.

My internist does the genital exam first then rectal.

My PCP & Urologist does the penis and testicle exam, then a glove change for the DRE

Genital then rectal/prostate, using the same gloves.

Normally I would say genitals then rectal, but at one time I had an older female doctor who did the reverse. She wore double gloves for the rectal exam and removed the soiled pair to do the genital exam. On a few occasions my penis got semi erect during the rectal exam. When I would turn around for her to do the genital and hernia exam she would comment that my partial erection was normal.

At my exams genital exam is always done first and rectal exam is last. At the rectal exam the transrectal ultrasound is done first followed by the digital prostata exam.

When I have had both, it has always been genitals before rectal/prostate.

For me it has always been the genital exam/hernia check first, followed by the rectal exam/prostate check, both done as the final part of the physical.

For me the genital was the end of the exam before there was a rectal, but at the last one it was everything "over the underpants", then genital (including testicular and hernia check), then rectal last. I guess they keep the most embarrassing stuff for the end, though in retrospect I wonder what it would be like to just get it over with and then move on to the other stuff.

For me the rectal has always been the very last part of the exam, if there is a rectal exam.

First, bent over the table for a digital rectal exam, then I hop up on the table, lie on my back and have my genitals palpated.

I recall one chapter in a medical textbook I used (many years ago) which had the epigraph 'Never insult the vagina by examining the rectum first.' Bit paternalistic maybe but probably a fair rule of thumb. (no pun intended)

Never had a rectal exam from a real doctor, but in the one play exam I've done, the rectal exam was the final part of the exam. I thought that made sense as it's the most humiliating part, with the patient presenting his or her anus to the doctor for inspection, and everything else should work towards that.

All of my exams since turning 40 included a rectal exam which has always been done after an examination of my genitals.

I’ve always had genital exam done first.

Always genital first then rectal