Purpose: It is no longer disputed in any country in Europe that the treatment of coloproctological patients requires specialist knowledge and skills. The individual countries, however, provide a wide range of care procedures. In order to survey the training and care provided in the field of coloproctology on a Europe-wide scale, a questionnaire covering a total of seven fields of interest was sent to all of the national coloproctological societies.
Results: “Coloproctology” means more than just “colorectal surgery” for most of the societies. Accordingly, there are a variety of structures and interests. Initial and further training in proctology and coloproctology are extremely varied. With the exception of Great Britain, Ireland and Lithuania, there is no officially structured further training in the field of coloproctology. In Germany there is structured training only in the field of proctology.
Conclusion: European standards are essential for the qualified provision of care for coloproctological patients. A start has been made with the EBSQ examination for “Coloproctology” for colorectal surgeons. Out-patient treatment of coloproctological problems should, however, not been neglected, since only about 10% of patients require surgical treatment.