Peristeen rectal irrigation for functional bowel disorders: Which patients benefit?

Functional bowel disorders (FBD) are distressing for patients and pose a treatment dilemma for clinicians. Management is usually conservative, with rectal irrigation one of the available treatments. This study aimed to determine the acceptability and efficacy of rectal irrigation in a group of patients with FBD who had not responded to standard biofeedback treatment. All patients had previously been appropriately investigated and undergone standard biofeedback treatment with psychological assessment. Patients were taught to irrigate by a specialist nurse and followed up regularly. A visual analogue score was used to quantify symptoms. Over an 8-year period 113 patients were treated with rectal irrigation.