Sigmoidoscopy discomfort

NEW YORK, June 27 (Praxis Press) Physicians often cite patient discomfort as a reason for not requesting screening flexible sigmoidoscopy. Patient experiences and attitudes toward sigmoidoscopy, however, have not been well studied. To measure patient satisfaction with screening sigmoidoscopy, Schoen and colleagues surveyed 1221 patients after sigmoidoscopy (see paper). They found that more than 93% of the participants strongly agreed or agreed they would be willing to undergo another examination, and 74.9% would strongly recommend the procedure to their friends. In addition, they found that 76.2% strongly agreed or agreed that the examination did not cause a lot of pain, 78.1% stated that it did not cause a lot of discomfort, and 68.5% thought that it was more comfortable than they expected. Physicians should not project discomfort onto patients as a reason for not requesting screening sigmoidoscopy.