Welcome to our Colorectal & Pelvic Floor Center

Colonoscopy is indicated to assess the colon and rectum to evaluate bowel symptoms, as well as for screening for colonic polyps and cancer. Colorectal Cancer is increasingly common in the age group of those 45 and above, and the understanding that colonic polyps develop into cancer over 5-10 years allows colonoscopy screening to be a good way to remove polyps before they turn into cancer. Colonoscopy can also pick up other diagnoses such as colonic inflammation, infection as well as diverticular disease.

Colonoscopy is generally safe and well tolerated, and is done under sedation to minimise discomfort. Risk of serious complications are low, especially when performed by an experienced endoscopist. However as the quality of endoscopy will depend on the cleanliness of the bowel, bowel preparation and cleansing is of utmost importance. Omitting fibre from the diet 3 days before your scope, as well as taking the bowel preparation according to recommendations thus helps to get an optimal result. Our clinic provides an experienced endoscopist who has been teaching endoscopy for many years while in public service.

Piles is a benign condition and only very infrequently leads to significant morbidity. Treatment of piles should be personalised depending on the individual patient’s concerns and symptoms. There are many options of treatment from oral to topical medications to local procedures to surgery. It is important to discuss with your doctor to find the best approach for you as every patient is unique.

Traditional open surgery is effective however comes with it some unintended consequences. Large incisions and prolonged exposure of the bowel content to the atmosphere can lead to significant pain, higher rates of post operative hernias, as well as a delayed recovery of bowel function. Minimally invasive surgery combines the effectiveness of open surgery with the advantages of small abdominal incisions and significantly reduced exposure of contents to the environment. This leads to less pain, faster recovery and lower risk of other complications.

Although not all patients are suitable or straightforward for minimally invasive surgery, an experienced and skilled surgeon can minimise conversion to open surgery and perform even complex procedures using a minimally invasive approach. We will be happy to discuss all approaches for your condition and recommend the best option for your needs.

Robotic and laparoscopic surgery are different forms of minimally invasive surgery. In traditional laparoscopic surgery, the surgeon and assistants hold instruments and a two dimensional camera that are inserted into ports, through which straight instruments are used to perform surgery. However the difficulty in depth perception as well as operating in narrow spaces (eg. the pelvis) can make it challenging. As the surgeon stands by the patient’s bedside during laparoscopic surgical procedures, it can also be ergonomically challenging to perform long and complex surgery in this way.

In Robotic surgery, a specialised robotic platform is used which is attached to more flexible instruments and a highly magnified 3 dimensional camera, which is then controlled by the surgeon who sits in an ergonomically comfortable position to perform the surgery. This allows more complex surgery within narrow spaces to be done much more smoothly and with less limitations. Some research has suggested that due to this difference there may be benefit to patients who have had robotic surgery in terms of faster recovery and reduced hospital stay compared to laparoscopic surgery.