Definate Dx and our first fistula...

If it is a fistula, he needs to be on a medication to close it, as far as I know. Was this his GI who said "fistula maybe"? Fistulas are serious. Where would it be fistulating from? Is he on an Immunosuppresant? 6mp, Remicade, SOMETHING?! As soon I my ulcer started fistulating, I was put on Remicade IMMEDIATELY. It went from one inch deep to 1/4 inch within 3 months on Remicade! Of course, Remicade has potential side effects. Please don't tell me it was hubby's GI who said fistula maybe and acted like it was nothing. HORRIBLE! Get a new doctor if it was him! If not, got to the GI ASAP!

"A fistula is an abnormal tunnel connecting two body cavities (such as the rectum and the vagina) or a body cavity to the skin (like the rectum to the outside of the body). One way a fistula may form is from an abscess -- a pocket of pus in the body. The abscess may be constantly filling with body fluids such as stool or urine, which prevents healing. Eventually the fistula breaks through to the skin, another body cavity, or an organ. "
http://ibdcrohns.about.com/cs/relatedconditions/a/fistula.htm

If it is a fistula it may be painful and I found with my fistula that pain was relieved once it opened up and was able to drain out. My fistula is on my belly right under my belly button. I have had CD for 20 years now and up until this year I was Dx with inflammatory CD which in the gut was just limited to my ileum now I have Fistulizing Crohn's-colitis. I was Dx with my first fistula while undergoing emergency resection when my ileum perforated. The fistula was intestine to intestine that they found once they opened me up. My colorectal surgeon said had I not had surgery the fistula I know have would be an abscess under my skin and be as painful as it was before it began draining. My doctor has exhausted all treatments to make it go away and none has worked therefore I am having a fistulagram tomorrow and a colonoscopy next week so my doc will have a better idea of where the fistula is stemming from as well as where the disease is active now so he will know what he needs to remove in my surgery to fix my fistula.

Remicade and Humira are some of the newer meds to help with fistulas. If it is a fistula it may be painful for DH (sorry dont know who that may be I may have missed a prior post saying that) What you may want to do is apply heat to the area that is bulging. if it is painful it may make it easier if it is able to drain. I had been using a heating pad on my belly for months since all 3 of my surgeries. like a pimple placing heat on the area brings it to a head so then it can be popped then that pain is releaved. My fistula is in my scarline therefore I have a weak area in the muscle wall the skin started turning a dark purplish color and after my shower I really noticed how much the area swelled up overnight after having the heating pad on my belly for that length of time.

After my shower I sat on th toilet knowing if I was able to open this thing up it was going to drain lots. I had a local abscess in that area that healed about 10 days before the abscess I had there before was from part of a suture that had grown into the skin so well that the doc was unable to remove it when he was taking out those sutures. He had me on pred post op so he kept the staples in for 2 weeks and sutures in for 4 weeks 2 of the regular sutures grew in so well he was unable to get them and informed me that they would make their way out. One I was able to get out that night then the other area swelled up and popped like apimple a few days later and in the hole I was able to remove the suture with tweezers.

The abscessed area that I was trying to open up I would have gone to the doc that day but it was a sunday and my doc was on vacation for the follwoing week. I made an appt with one of the otehr docs in the office but I was in fact able to open the area up gently after my shower. What i did was saw the flakey skin over the area and was able to peel it off like skin peels after a sunburn. I sat on the toilet with the roll of TP in front of me. I dried off then sat there gently tugging on the skin outside of the swollen area about 1 inch outside of the reddened area. the area opoed up and drained for a while. I pressed on the skin under the hole and all of the sides and bandaged it up as the doc had me do when it was the abscess from the suture. Later that night I went to change the bandage and that was the first time I saw feces come from the area. When the fistula starts to drain less I find I get more pain until it begins to drain more again. You may want to ask the doc about doing something to hep it to drain since if it si a fistula that DH has feces and pus sitting in a pocket causing infection