Impact of flexible sigmoidoscopy on physician compliance with colorectal cancer screening protocol.

The flexible sigmoidoscope may represent a partial solution to the longstanding problem of physician and patient noncompliance with sigmoidoscopy for the detection of colorectal cancer. A three-year longitudinal audit of medical records revealed at least a sevenfold increase in the number of sigmoidoscopies performed after the introduction of flexible sigmoidoscopy to a salaried medical group. This procedure has made a significant contribution to patient care and resident education in the UCLA family practice residency program.