The usefulness of endoscopic polypectomy of rectosigmoid and colon in childhood

Rectal polyps are relatively frequent in infancy and constitute one of the main causes of hematoquezia during this time of life. They are usually treated with multiple drugs before the correct diagnosis is made. We report our experiences with the use of rectoscopy and colonoscopy for the diagnosis and treatment of 214 patients with rectosigmoid polyps, including other sites in the colon, studied between 1982-1988. The highest incidence was between 3 and 6 years of age (63.8%), and the most frequent location in 253 rectosigmoid polyps (91%) and histologically (99.7%) were juvenile polyps. Endoscopic polypectomy proved to be a valuable method, easy to perform and with few complications to treat colon polyps, thus eliminating the surgical interventions.