Flexible Sigmoidoscopy After Ileostomy: What to Expect?

I am going to get a  flexible sigmoidoscopy in the anal stump it's the first since I have had my ileostomy was just wondering what it has involved? is there pain? is there blood ? Will there be a option for sedation  i am very nervous about it  

rossitis22,

  I had one done last year and there isn't much to it.  I too still have my rectum intact and about 8 of colon left.  It's a cheaper than a colonoscopy but there isn't much of an option for sedation.  You can ask the doctor to use lidocaine and that will kill the initial bite of the scope going in.

  The doctor will be in there all of 5 minutes tops, squeeze some air in there and may take a tissue sample which will not hurt.  In my case, my rectum has a lot of scar tissue and the opening isn't as big as your average rectum.  So for me, it's not very comfortable and I had some bleeding.  But if your rectum is average, you'll do just fine.

  But at least you don't have to prep for it.  Hope this helps.

Bain

If it's only going in your anus & rectal stump it's uncomfortable but not painful, I used to have them alot before I had my stump removed, you won't need any sedation

I had them every 3 months for a year after my ostomy, then every 6 months. No big. Minimal discomfort, no real pain. Occasionally some bleeding, but mostly because I had a spot of radiation-damaged tissue in the colon stump which didn't want to heal and he was monitoring it closely. (And eventually, it did perforate, but that's another story altogether!) At any rate, I am scheduled for the whole shebang in November - colonostomy colonoscopy (say that 3 times fast!) along with another sigmoidoscope through the rectal stump. Again, no worries - I will be asleep for the whole thing, mainly because of the ostomy scope.