Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsPurpose of TestRisksBefore the TestDuring the TestAfter the TestInterpreting Results
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
Purpose of Test
Risks
Before the Test
During the Test
After the Test
Interpreting Results
A digital rectal exam (DRE) is a simple procedure in which a healthcare provider inserts a lubricated, gloved finger into the anus to check for abnormalities in the rectum and pelvic area. While commonly associated with the earlydetection of prostate cancer, a DRE also can be used to check for anal or rectal masses, abnormal growths in women’s reproductive organs, and more.
Getty Images
A digital rectal exam can help to detect a variety of conditions in both men and women:
Prostate cancer is one of the most common types of cancer in men, with about 11% being diagnosed in their lifetime. For this reason, men aged 55 to 69 should discuss with their healthcare providers whether they should get a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test to screen for prostate cancer. The DRE is no longer recommended for routine screening.
A number of important anatomic structures are located in the lower pelvis including the prostate and the rectum/lower colon, which means it’s possible a healthcare provider might not catch an abnormality with a DRE alone. For this reason, this exam may also be performed in tandem with other tests, such as asigmoidoscopy, a diagnostic procedure in which a flexible, lighted tube called a sigmoidoscope is inserted into the rectum to check for cancer or other abnormalities in the rectum and lower colon.
Additionally, while a DRE can detect problems that may be missed with blood tests (such as the prostate-specific antigen or PSA test) or imaging tests (such as CT or MRI exams), the same can sometimes be said for performing the DRE without these tests.
Although a digital rectal exam poses virtually no risks, some people find it briefly uncomfortable. And for a man who has an inflamed prostate (as inprostatitis), a DRE can even be somewhat painful. Still, as with many preventative procedures, potential discomfort is temporary. Given that, it is not a test that should be skipped or resisted when it’s necessary.
There is nothing you need to do prior to a digital rectal exam. You can eat, exercise, and otherwise do what you normally do beforehand.
Timing
A DRE should take no more than a minute or two. Your healthcare provider will be able to tell you immediately if they detected any abnormalities during the exam.
Cost and Health Insurance
To begin the exam, you will be asked to undress completely below the waist. You may be given a hospital gown to wear. If you’re a woman who is undergoing the test as part of a vaginal exam it’s likely you’ll already be undressed and in position.
You will then be asked to get into a position that is both comfortable for you and allows the healthcare provider to most easily perform the DRE. This may mean bending over at the waist with your hands on the examination table, lying on your left side with your knees drawn up toward your chest, lying on your back with your knees raised and your feet in stirrups, or even squatting.
Next, your healthcare provider puts on clean gloves and applies a lubricant to the finger they will be using for the exam. They’ll then gently insert the lubricated finger into your anus. For men being screened for prostate cancer, a healthcare provider will need to apply firm pressure in order to be able to feel enlargements, nodules, or other abnormalities, which may create the sensation of an urgent need to urinate. This will pass once the exam is completed.
If you’re having the exam for a reason other than to screen for prostate cancer, your healthcare provider will feel around your lower rectum for growths, tenderness, or other abnormalities in this region or in the female reproductive organs if you’re having it as part of a vaginal exam to check for ovarian or uterine cancer.
You may have a very small amount of bleeding after the exam, particularly if you have hemorrhoids or other rectal problems.Most people have no bleeding.
It is also possible that the uncomfortable nature of the exam could cause you to have avasovagalresponse. If this occurs, you may feel very lightheaded or possibly even faint. This, again, is rare.
Your healthcare provider should be able to tell you immediately if they felt anything of concern during your digital rectal exam. However, it’s important to understand that DRE results aren’t definitive. Even if a healthcare provider isn’t able to detect a problem digitally doesn’t necessarily mean there isn’t one.
Given a DRE cannot provide a definitive diagnosis, follow-up tests may be required depending on the condition in question. If prostate abnormalities are detected, more testing will likely be necessary, such as a PSA test, MRI, orcore needle biopsy, which involves inserting a hollow-core needle into a growth to remove a small cylinder of prostate tissue.
Other potential follow-up follow-up tests to determine the severity of an enlarged prostate include:
To further understand a diagnosis of fecal incontinence, a healthcare provider may order:
For women, as follow-up to a DRE performed in tandem with a vaginal exam in which abnormalities were detected in reproductive organs, a healthcare provider may request other imaging procedures, such as a transvaginal ultrasound.
A Word From Verywell
There’s nothing pleasant about having a digital rectal examination: You may understandably find it uncomfortable and even embarrassing, but it can be as vital to your health and well-being as having your temperature or blood pressure taken. It also will take no longer to perform than either of those basic tests and given the wealth of information it can reveal, it’s worth taking a deep breath and perhaps imagining yourself on a sunny beach to get you through. Remember, too, that for your healthcare provider, a DRE is a routine medical procedure, and they will be able to help you deal with any discomfort you may be feeling.
11 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Cancer Society.Screening tests for prostate cancer.US Preventive Services Task Force, Grossman DC, Curry SJ, et al.Screening for prostate cancer: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement.JAMA. 2018;319(18):1901-1913. doi:10.1001/jama.2018.3710National Library of Medicine: MedlinePlus.Digital rectal exam.National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Flexible sigmoidoscopy.Urology Care Foundation.What is prostate cancer?.Khan FU, Ihsan AU, Khan HU, et al.Comprehensive overview of prostatitis.Biomed Pharmacother. 2017;94:1064–1076. doi:10.1016/j.biopha.2017.08.016Quinn J, Zeleny T, Rajaratnam V, Ghiurluc DL, Bencko V.Debate: the per rectal/digital rectal examination exam in the emergency department, still best practice?.Int J Emerg Med. 2018;11(1):20. doi:10.1186/s12245-018-0165-zReis LO, Simão AF, Baracat J, Denardi F, Gugliotta A.Digital rectal examination standardization for inexperienced hands: teaching medical students.Adv Urol. 2013;2013:797096. doi:10.1155/2013/797096American Cancer Society.Insurance coverage for prostate cancer screening.Harvard Health Publishing.Digital rectal exam.American Cancer Society.Can ovarian cancer be found early?.
11 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.American Cancer Society.Screening tests for prostate cancer.US Preventive Services Task Force, Grossman DC, Curry SJ, et al.Screening for prostate cancer: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement.JAMA. 2018;319(18):1901-1913. doi:10.1001/jama.2018.3710National Library of Medicine: MedlinePlus.Digital rectal exam.National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Flexible sigmoidoscopy.Urology Care Foundation.What is prostate cancer?.Khan FU, Ihsan AU, Khan HU, et al.Comprehensive overview of prostatitis.Biomed Pharmacother. 2017;94:1064–1076. doi:10.1016/j.biopha.2017.08.016Quinn J, Zeleny T, Rajaratnam V, Ghiurluc DL, Bencko V.Debate: the per rectal/digital rectal examination exam in the emergency department, still best practice?.Int J Emerg Med. 2018;11(1):20. doi:10.1186/s12245-018-0165-zReis LO, Simão AF, Baracat J, Denardi F, Gugliotta A.Digital rectal examination standardization for inexperienced hands: teaching medical students.Adv Urol. 2013;2013:797096. doi:10.1155/2013/797096American Cancer Society.Insurance coverage for prostate cancer screening.Harvard Health Publishing.Digital rectal exam.American Cancer Society.Can ovarian cancer be found early?.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
American Cancer Society.Screening tests for prostate cancer.US Preventive Services Task Force, Grossman DC, Curry SJ, et al.Screening for prostate cancer: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement.JAMA. 2018;319(18):1901-1913. doi:10.1001/jama.2018.3710National Library of Medicine: MedlinePlus.Digital rectal exam.National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Flexible sigmoidoscopy.Urology Care Foundation.What is prostate cancer?.Khan FU, Ihsan AU, Khan HU, et al.Comprehensive overview of prostatitis.Biomed Pharmacother. 2017;94:1064–1076. doi:10.1016/j.biopha.2017.08.016Quinn J, Zeleny T, Rajaratnam V, Ghiurluc DL, Bencko V.Debate: the per rectal/digital rectal examination exam in the emergency department, still best practice?.Int J Emerg Med. 2018;11(1):20. doi:10.1186/s12245-018-0165-zReis LO, Simão AF, Baracat J, Denardi F, Gugliotta A.Digital rectal examination standardization for inexperienced hands: teaching medical students.Adv Urol. 2013;2013:797096. doi:10.1155/2013/797096American Cancer Society.Insurance coverage for prostate cancer screening.Harvard Health Publishing.Digital rectal exam.American Cancer Society.Can ovarian cancer be found early?.
American Cancer Society.Screening tests for prostate cancer.
US Preventive Services Task Force, Grossman DC, Curry SJ, et al.Screening for prostate cancer: US Preventive Services Task Force Recommendation Statement.JAMA. 2018;319(18):1901-1913. doi:10.1001/jama.2018.3710
National Library of Medicine: MedlinePlus.Digital rectal exam.
National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.Flexible sigmoidoscopy.
Urology Care Foundation.What is prostate cancer?.
Khan FU, Ihsan AU, Khan HU, et al.Comprehensive overview of prostatitis.Biomed Pharmacother. 2017;94:1064–1076. doi:10.1016/j.biopha.2017.08.016
Quinn J, Zeleny T, Rajaratnam V, Ghiurluc DL, Bencko V.Debate: the per rectal/digital rectal examination exam in the emergency department, still best practice?.Int J Emerg Med. 2018;11(1):20. doi:10.1186/s12245-018-0165-z
Reis LO, Simão AF, Baracat J, Denardi F, Gugliotta A.Digital rectal examination standardization for inexperienced hands: teaching medical students.Adv Urol. 2013;2013:797096. doi:10.1155/2013/797096
American Cancer Society.Insurance coverage for prostate cancer screening.
Harvard Health Publishing.Digital rectal exam.
American Cancer Society.Can ovarian cancer be found early?.
Meet Our Medical Expert Board
Share Feedback
Was this page helpful?Thanks for your feedback!What is your feedback?OtherHelpfulReport an ErrorSubmit
Was this page helpful?
Thanks for your feedback!
What is your feedback?OtherHelpfulReport an ErrorSubmit
What is your feedback?
