Surgical and postoperative evaluations of rectal adenomas excised with a rigid proctoscope

This study presents the surgical and postoperative results achieved with a rigid proctoscope using the transanal endoscopic technique to excise rectal adenomas. The results are compared to the results obtained with other currently employed transanal techniques.

We investigated the medical records of patients who underwent transanal endoscopic operations from April 2000 to June 2018 at two tertiary referral centers for colorectal cancer.

This study included 99 patients. The mean age was 65.3 ± 13.3 years. The average size of the adenomas was 4.6 ± 2.3 cm, and their average distance to the anal border was 5.6 ± 3.3 cm. The average operative time was 65.3 ± 41.7 min. In 48.5% of the operations, the specimen was fragmented, and in 59.6% of the cases, the microscopic margins were free. The rates of postoperative complications and relapse were 5% and 19%, respectively. The mean follow-up was 80 ± 61.5 months.

The described proctoscope proved to be a viable technique with results similar to other techniques, with the advantage that it allowed greater accessibility for surgeons. Therefore, its use could be implemented and become widespread in surgical practice.